Diez v. Pearson

CRANE, Judge.

Plaintiff William F. Diez appeals the dismissal of his defamation action against defendant A.R. Pearson for failure to state a cause of action. We affirm on the ground that the allegedly defamatory statements were opinions which were privileged under the First Amendment.

Diez, a member of the County Commission of Franklin County, Missouri, filed a one count petition for defamation against Pearson, the Franklin County Assessor, alleging that in October, 1990, Pearson wrote and sent letters to Franklin County newspapers. He alleged that three of these letters, one of which was…