; ; ; ;

A tarot card-reading influencer is learning the true cost of making false statements online in a case that has set a chilling precedent for content creators.

Ashley Guillard, a Houston-based influencer went viral in November 2022 for theorizing about the murders of four University of students in a series of videos in which she falsely claimed that Rebecca Scofield, a professor at the university, was responsible for orchestrating the infamous killings committed by .

In the videos, Guillard sometimes consulted tarot cards as a part of her theorizing and implied that Scofield was romantically involved with one of the victims, .

After Guillard ignored multiple cease and desist letters from Scofield, the professor sued her for defamation in December 2022.

Now, nearly four years later, a federal jury has awarded Scofield $10 million in damages - ten times the $1 million that her lawyers had asked for in compensatory damages.

Lawyer says verdict sends warning to TikTok sleuths spreading misinformation

For Domenic Romano, managing attorney of Romano Law, PLLC, where he specializes in entertainment law, including advising influencers and content creators, the verdict was a clear message for TikTok sleuths: there are real life consequences for spreading misinformation and making false statements online.

'What certain content creators, including this one, are finding out is that laws that exist in the real world, laws that journalists or people who write online or people...

Read Full Story: https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMi-AFBVV95cUxOUzNKd2pMUENXZUdCZXBNRXJU...