Coats v. News Corporation

This is an action for libel. Plaintiff sued for $50,000.00 actual and $50,000.00 punitive damages. He had a verdict for one dollar compensatory damages and one dollar punitive damages. He filed a motion for new trial on the sole ground of inadequacy of the verdict. This was overruled and plaintiff has appealed from the final judgment entered.

Oh November 29, 1940, Charles C. Coates, who had just been sentenced to life imprisonment, escaped, with other convicts from the Buchanan County jail. Defendant, publisher of morning and evening newspapers, published articles about, this jail break, in…