The underlying action before this Court is a defamation case filed by a former federal
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BACKGROUND
The underlying action before this Court is a defamation case filed by a former federal
judge, Paul Cassell, and his colleague Brad Edwards, who represent various sexual trafficking
victims in a case pending in the Southern District of Florida, specifically case no. 08-cv-80736-
KAM, hereinafter (““CVRA case”). As a result of an affidavit filed in the CVRA case, Defendant
went on a national media defamation campaign calling, among other things, former federal judge
Paul Cassell and attorney Brad Edwards, “unethical lawyers” who should be “disbarred”. See
Exhibit 7, Today Show, January 5, 2015. In response to this national slander campaign by the
Defendant, Paul Cassell and Brad Edwards filed a defamation case against Defendant in the
Circuit Court of the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit for Broward County, Case No. CACE 15-
000072, hereinafter “Florida Defamation Action”).
Defendant’s statements against Paul Cassell and Brad Edwards are statements about their
character as lawyers and do not directly involve non-party Jane Doe No. 3. Despite this fact,
Defendant is abusing the subpoena power in this case by seeking documents from a non-party that
are irrelevant to the defamation issue before this Court. Defendant is determined to find a way to
harm non-party Jane Doe No. 3 and anyone who braves to represent her. Jane Doe No. 3 has good
cause to be fearful of the Defendant in this matter based on Defendant’s repetitive threats. See
Exhibit 8, Affidavit of Jane Doe No. 3. This Court should not allow Defendant to abuse the
subpoena power to further abuse this non-party. Florida Rules of Civil Procedure provide a
vehicle for this Court to protect a non-party from a harassing, burdensome and unnecessary
subpoena. As explained below, non-party Jane Doe No. 3 should be protected from having to be
deposed in this matter or produce documents. Defendant’s campaign of threats and intimidation
should not be condoned by this Court and Defendant’s subpoena should be quashed in its entirety.
HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_015601
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