Anti-SLAPP news out of California this week:
Animal Rights activist Marcy Winograd has hired Mark Goldowitz, Director of Anti-SLAPP Project, to represent her in a “Free Speech case” before California Court of Appeal.
A Los Angeles public school teacher and Santa Monica resident, Winograd will be represented by Goldowitz in Angel and Nester vs. Winograd.
In November, 2014, pony ride operators Tawni Angel and Jason Nester filed a defamation lawsuit against Winograd for her petition campaign to end what she allege is “animal cruelty at the Main Street Farmers Market in Santa Monica.” Winograd and nearly 2,000 petition signers object to what they describe as “a cramped petting zoo and pony ride in which ponies are tethered to metal bars and forced to circle barefoot in one direction on concrete for almost four hours each Sunday.”
“We’re confident the Court will recognize this lawsuit for what it is — an attempt to muzzle activists by undermining constitutional rights,” said Goldowitz, who added, “A victory in this case could set a precedent for free speech and the right to petition legislative bodies in the Internet
Age.”
Read more from the Santa Monica Dispatch here.