zzdcar
Home
/
Reviews
/
Culture
/
Elon Musk Wins Bizarre 'Pedo-Guy' Lawsuit
Elon Musk Wins Bizarre 'Pedo-Guy' Lawsuit-November 2024
2024-02-19 EST 22:12:50

Graphic: Jason Torchinsky / Jalopnik

A jury found Tesla and SpaceX CEO not liable in the defamation lawsuit brought against him by British caver Vernon Unsworth, who Musk claimed was a “pedo guy” in a tweet last year.

The jury deliberated for a mere three hours.

Here’s more from :

“My faith in humanity is restored,” said Musk in court after the verdict was delivered. The jury deliberated for less than three hours in the case, which started earlier this week.

Unsworth brought the suit against Musk in September 2018, after the and SpaceX CEO had called him “sus” (suspicious) and a “pedo guy” on Twitter earlier that summer. Musk also characterized the spelunker as a “child rapist” in e-mails to Buzzfeed reporter Ryan Mac, and practically requested the lawsuit in August 2018 with a tweet that said, “Don’t you think it’s strange he hasn’t sued me?”

Unsworth was one of the leads on a team that rescued 12 members of a soccer team and their coach from a Thailand cave last year. During the tense days the team was trapped in the caves, Musk publicly began development of a submersible which would be intended for use in carrying members of the trapped team out of the cave. Unsworth later claimed Musk’s submersible was a “,” which led to Musk’s “” response on Twitter.

Image for article titled Elon Musk Wins Bizarre 'Pedo-Guy' Lawsuit

The case potentially sets a huge precedent, as it’s one of the first defamation lawsuits concerning a tweet against a private individual to ever go to trial, CNBC points out.

Musk and his defense team positioned his tweets against Unsworth as insults but not facts, and argued the situation was no more than an argument, despite Unsworth’s team pointing out Musk’s massive following of millions on the social media platform and the potential damage to the caver’s reputation.

As part of his ongoing defamation lawsuit filed by Vernon Unsworth, the cave-diverElon Musk called

I’m honestly shocked a jury could come to Musk’s defense in this case. Libel is to be a written false statement of fact, and I fail to see how a powerful CEO with millions of Twitter followers publishing an accusation that an international hero is a pedophile, and claiming so again in emails to reporters, is somehow not a written false statement of fact.

But Musk has gotten away with this one, though trying to dig up dirt on Unsworth in one of the more obvious scams I’ve seen recently. I can’t stop laughing at that part.

Comments
Welcome to zzdcar comments! Please keep conversations courteous and on-topic. To fosterproductive and respectful conversations, you may see comments from our Community Managers.
Sign up to post
Sort by
Show More Comments
Culture
Electric Ford SUV Wearing Skin Of A Mustang Still Happening Next Month
Electric Ford SUV Wearing Skin Of A Mustang Still Happening Next Month
Ford will debut its controversial new on Nov. 17, whether we want it or not. We’re still doing this. Ford is going ahead with its new electric CUV “inspired” by the design of the iconic Ford Mustang, and it will debut next month, likely just before the opening of...
Nov 17, 2025
Subaru EJ20 Engine Put To Rest After 30 Years Of Hoon-Tastic Service
Subaru EJ20 Engine Put To Rest After 30 Years Of Hoon-Tastic Service
The flat-four Subaru EJ engine is like that tough old man who’s a fixture at a local dive bar: he won’t start shit with you, but he’ll definitely finish it if you step to him. Now, after 30 years in service, one of this engine’s more notable variants—the EJ20—finally...
Nov 17, 2025
Toyota Goes All-Out Bonkers At The Tokyo Motor Show With Robots And Flying Brooms
Toyota Goes All-Out Bonkers At The Tokyo Motor Show With Robots And Flying Brooms
Let me just start out by saying that while, yes, so is deeply and richly bonkers, this is precisely what auto shows are for. Do I really think Toyota is going to be cornering that lucrative Quidditch market with their Nimbus 2000-killing e-Broom? No. But is it, along with...
Nov 17, 2025
Hyundai Isn't Done With The Jaw-Dropping Sedans
Hyundai Isn't Done With The Jaw-Dropping Sedans
It wasn’t too long ago that Hyundai stunned almost everyone with the dramatic redesign of the . It looks like that trend is going to continue, as teasers of the promise yet another fascinating sedan. As previewed by Hyundai’s global Twitter account, the upcoming redesigned Hyundai Azera—which is sold...
Nov 17, 2025
Tesla Scores Profitable Q3 As It Turns Its Eyes To China
Tesla Scores Profitable Q3 As It Turns Its Eyes To China
Tesla’s big plans for China, some (bleak) third-quarter earnings updates, the latest on Carlos Ghosn and more await you in for Thursday, Oct. 24, 2019. Heyo, guess who scraped out a profit last quarter? Tesla! The profit was “modest” according to , but now that that’s in order, the...
Nov 17, 2025
Honda's Massive Ohio Plant Rose As General Motors Fell
Honda's Massive Ohio Plant Rose As General Motors Fell
In 1976, at a Wendy’s in Columbus, Ohio Governor James A. Rhodes sat down with some Japanese government officials for burgers at 10:30 a.m. Rhodes wanted one thing: for Honda to build its first American plant in his state. The Wendy’s meeting was the latest in a series of overtures...
Nov 17, 2025
Copyright 2023-2025 - www.zzdcar.com All Rights Reserved