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1 ELECTRONICALLY FILED 5/6/2008 4:10 PM CV CIRCUIT COURT OF JEFFERSON COUNTY, ALABAMA ANNE-MARIE ADAMS, CLERK IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF JEFFERSON COUNTY, ALABAMA ALAN BURDETTE, an individual, DEBBIE BURDETTE, an individual, Plaintiffs, v. CASE NO.: TINA TIDMORE, an individual and in her capacity as owner of Tidmore Publications, Inc., publisher of the Clay News, a Jefferson County newspaper and administrator of an online newspaper and discussion forum; TIDMORE PUBLICATIONS, INC., an Alabama corporation; A, B, C, D and E, being that person, firm, corporation, or other legal entity who or which disseminated slanderous and/or libelous information concerning either of the Plaintiffs to third parties, whether on their own or on behalf of the other named Defendants, whose names will be substituted by amendment when ascertained, Defendants. VERIFIED COMPLAINT COME NOW, your Plaintiffs, by and through the undersigned counsel, and request that this Court enter judgment in their favor on the grounds set forth below: 1. Plaintiff, Alan Burdette, is an adult male, over the age of nineteen (19 years, and at all times pertinent to this action has been a resident citizen of Jefferson County, Alabama. Courthouse News Service 1

2 2. Plaintiff, Debbie Burdette, is an adult female, is the spouse of Alan, is over the age of nineteen (19 years, and at all times pertinent to this action has been a resident of Jefferson County, Alabama. 3. Defendant, Tina Tidmore, (hereafter Tidmore, is an adult female, over the age of nineteen (19 years, at all times pertinent to this action has been a resident citizen of Jefferson County, Alabama. 4. Defendant, Tidmore Publications, Inc., is a Jefferson County, Alabama, corporation doing business in Jefferson County, Alabama. 5. At all times pertinent, Plaintiff, Alan Burdette, has been involved in various financial transactions in the states of Alabama and Florida and is also an attorney licensed with the Alabama State Bar and has been so for over twenty (20 years. 6. At all times pertinent to this action, Tidmore has been the owner and operator of Tidmore Publications, Inc., (hereafter Tidmore Publications located at 7729 Shriner Drive, Pinson, Alabama 35126, that publishes the Clay News newspaper disseminated in Jefferson County, Alabama. 7. Tidmore, Tidmore Publications, Inc. and/or fictitious defendants are the administrator(s of a news website that has a discussion forum disseminated worldwide. 8. Tidmore, as owner, operator, publisher and roving reporter of Clay News, Tidmore Publications, Inc. and the fictitious defendants have, over the past six months, published in the Clay News newspaper in Jefferson County various articles concerning Plaintiff, Alan, Burdette, and his involvement in various financial transactions with citizens throughout the State of Alabama and in Florida. 2

3 9. Tidmore, Tidmore Publications, Inc. and the fictitious defendants (sometimes hereafter referred to collectively as Defendants, have operated, supervised and otherwise administrated the Clay News online forum in Jefferson County, Alabama and have, over the past six months, made Plaintiff, Alan Burdette, and his involvement in various financial transactions with citizens throughout the State of Alabama and Florida the subject of an online forum. 10. Defendants have included on their online forum a statement to the effect that libelous comments will be removed and publishers of libelous comments will be banned from Defendants website. 11. Plaintiff, Alan Burdette, and Defendant, Tidmore, have had business relationship in the past which has resulted in negative feelings between Plaintiff and Tidmore. 12. In connection with Tidmore s activities as owner, publisher and roving reporter for the Clay News, from a period beginning in or about February, 2008, to the present, Tidmore has initiated communications with one or more individuals in which she has made defamatory statements about Plaintiff, Alan Burdette, including Mr. Burdette s business associates. 13. In at least one instance, Defendant Tidmore has used a ruse of calling a business associate of Plaintiff, Alan Burdette s, at the business associate s place of employment in which Defendant Tidmore told an employee that answered the telephone (a public school employee that Defendant Tidmore was calling on behalf of the Plaintiff, Alan Burdette, and that the matter was an emergency and that the employee should have the business associate return the call immediately. Plaintiff, Alan Burdette s, 3

4 business associate left his high school classroom unattended to return the telephone call allegedly to Plaintiff, Alan Burdette, only to find that the caller was Defendant Tidmore inquiring as to the business associate s relationship with Plaintiff, Alan Burdette, and that Plaintiff, Alan Burdette, was a crook, had cheated and conned him and others out of money and that he would never get his money back. (An Affidavit of the business associate containing the information communicated by Defendant Tidmore will be submitted to the Court under seal at a later date. 14. In or about February, 2008, Tidmore published statements in various communications to Plaintiff, Debbie Burdette, with the intent to cause Plaintiff, Debbie Burdette, severe emotional distress. One of the s sent directly to Plaintiff, Debbie Burdette, contained an article published by Defendants and the title of the was For Alan intending to harass and incite a response from Plaintiff, Debbie Burdette. 15. Defendants communicated in at least one other known form, to-wit: via electronic transmission/blog information, to third parties in which statements of fact were made or in which information was repeated concerning Plaintiff, Alan Burdette, that were false with regard to Plaintiff, Alan, Burdette s involvement in various financial transactions. 16. In or about April, 2008, Defendants published false statements in the Clay News with regard to Plaintiff, Alan Burdette s, involvement in various financial transactions in the states of Alabama and Florida. Specifically, Defendants published th false statements in its Clay News April 17, 2008 article entitled Burdette Ordered to Stop in light of a Birmingham News article concerning an Alabama Securities Commission investigation. Defendants published a false statement that Randy Jones of 4

5 the Alabama Securities Commission stated that Plaintiff, Alan Burdette, cannot execute or be a party to loan or mortgage contracts. Defendants also published in its article that Randy Jones of the Alabama Securities Commission provided a statement or information which he denies providing. Again, the statements published by Defendants are totally false. Not only is Burdette not being prevented from being involved in loans or mortgage contracts, but Randy Jones of the Alabama Securities Commission did not give Defendants a statement due to the prohibition of doing so in light of an ongoing investigation. herein. COUNT I- SLANDER/LIBEL SLANDER, LIBEL AND DEFAMATION PER SE 17. Paragraphs (1 through (16 are incorporated by reference as if fully set forth 18. Defendants verbal and written/published statements with regard to Plaintiff, Alan Burdette, as outlined hereinabove were false. Defendants knew said statements were false or such statements were made with reckless disregard for their truth. 19. Defendants statements, were defamatory, slanderous and insulting, and Defendants made them with the malicious intent to injure Plaintiff, Alan Burdette s, reputation with the business associate mentioned in Paragraph 13 above and other of Plaintiff s business associates, to injure Plaintiff s professional reputation as an attorney, to injure Plaintiff s wife, co-plaintiff, Debbie Burdette, and to injure Plaintiff, Alan Burdette s, reputation in the community. 20. Tidmore s statements to Plaintiff, Alan Burdette s business associates, and 5

6 statements made by Defendants to other third parties, as referenced herein are tantamount to defamation per se under Alabama law. 21. As a proximate result of Defendants false and malicious statements made to third parties, Plaintiffs, Alan and Debbie Burdette, and their children and family, have been caused to suffer humiliation, embarrassment and disparagement and have been forced to take steps to clear their names and attempt to restore their dignity and reputation. 22. Plaintiff, Alan Burdette, has been hampered in the conduct of his business and affairs as a result of the statements made by Defendants. Much of this injury will endure permanently. 23. The statements made by Defendants concerning Plaintiff, Alan Burdette, referred to in this Complaint are untrue and were made with actual malice, intending to harm Plaintiff, Alan Burdette s, reputation, honor, and character. WHEREFORE, your Plaintiff, Alan Burdette, prays that this Honorable Court enter judgment against Defendants for defamation, via libel and slander, and defamation per se and award Plaintiff damages in the sum of one million dollars ($1,000, in compensatory damages and one million dollars ($1,000, in punitive damages, plus costs and for such other, further or different relief to which he may be entitled in this cause. forth herein. COUNT II FALSE LIGHT 24. Paragraphs (1 through (23 are incorporated by reference as if fully set 6

7 25. Defendants statements/publications in the Clay News and on the Clay News internet forum as described hereinabove has placed Plaintiff, Alan Burdette, before the public in a false light resulting in an invasion of his privacy. 26. Defendants statements/publications placing Plaintiff, Alan Burdette, in the false light of being dishonest, a wrongdoer, and being in violation of rules or laws as outlined hereinabove is highly offensive to Plaintiff and would be highly offensive to a reasonable person. 27. Defendants statements/publications made with regard to Plaintiff, Alan Burdette, were false and Defendants knew they were false or acted in reckless disregard for their falsity or the false light in which Plaintiff would be placed. 28. As a result of Defendant s placing Plaintiff in a false light, Plaintiff was caused to suffer emotional distress, damage to his financial and professional standing, lost time and inconvenience from the interruption of his ordinary business affairs, which included the necessity of retaining attorneys to address the issues and defend his name and character. WHEREFORE, your Plaintiff, Alan Burdette, prays that this Honorable Court enter judgment against Defendants for false light and award Plaintiff damages in the sum of one million dollars ($1,000, in compensatory damages and one million dollars ($1,000, in punitive damages, plus costs and for such other, further or different relief to which he may be entitled in this cause. COUNT III INTENTIONAL INFLICTION OF EMOTIONAL DISTRESS 29. Paragraphs (1 through (28 are hereby incorporated by reference. 7

8 30. Defendants, through their words and actions as hereinabove described, have caused Plaintiffs, Alan and Debbie Burdette, to suffer severe emotional distress in having to defend themselves and their family from accusations, humiliation, loss of reputation and anguish caused by the outrageous nature of Defendants slanderous and libelous communications. They have further been forced to defend Plaintiff, Alan Burdette s, reputation as a businessman and attorney in the community and to assuage unfounded fears in the minds of Plaintiff, Alan Burdette s business associates and, indirectly, his legal clients caused by the wrongful and outrageous accusations made by Defendants as alleged. 31. Defendants words and accusations are false, outrageous, and intolerable and have directly caused severe emotional harm to Plaintiffs, Alan and Debbie Burdette. 32. Defendants made the alleged statements knowing them to be false, with the intent to harm Plaintiff, Alan Burdette s, emotional and mental health and reputation within the community and with intent to harm Plaintiff, Debbie Burdette, mentally and emotionally. WHEREFORE, Plaintiffs, Alan Burdette and Debbie Burdette, pray that this Honorable Court enter judgment against Defendants for intentional infliction of emotional distress and award Plaintiffs damages in the sum of one million ($1,000, in compensatory damages and one million dollars ($1,000, in punitive damages, plus costs and for such other, further or different relief to which they may be entitled in the circumstances. COUNT IV NEGLIGENCE 8

9 33. Paragraphs (1 through (32 are hereby incorporated by reference. 34. Defendants owed a duty to Plaintiff, Alan Burdette, to refrain from publishing, dissemination and otherwise communicating false statements and statements made with reckless disregard for their falsity to third parties as outlined hereinabove. 35. Defendants advertised on their online forum that libelous comments will be removed and publishers of libelous comments will be banned from Defendants website. 36. Defendants have breached their duty to refrain from communicating, publishing and other disseminating false statements to third parties by making the telephone call to Plaintiff, Alan Burdette s business associate, publishing false statements in the Clay News newspaper and on the Clay News online forum as described hereinabove. 37. Defendants have further failed to refrain from themselves publishing libelous statements on their online forum and have failed to remove libelous comments concerning the Plaintiff, Alan Burdette, and to ban publishers of such libelous comments. 38. As a proximate result of Defendants negligence, Plaintiff and his wife, Debbie Burdette, have been caused to suffer humiliation and emotional distress, Alan Burdette has suffered damage to his financial and professional standing, lost time and inconvenience from the interruption of his ordinary business affairs, and both Plaintiffs have been caused to suffer financial damages, which include the necessity of retaining attorneys to address the issues and defend Alan Burdette s name and character. WHEREFORE, Plaintiffs, Alan Burdette and Debbie Burdette, pray that this Honorable Court enter judgment against Defendants for intentional infliction of emotional distress and award Plaintiffs damages in the sum of one million 9

10 ($1,000, in compensatory damages and one million dollars ($1,000, in punitive damages, plus costs and for such other, further or different relief to which they may be entitled in the circumstances. STATE OF ALABAMA COUNTY OF SHELBY s/ Alan Burdette Alan Burdette Sworn to and subscribed before me this 6th day of May, s/ Donna J. Beaulieu Notary Public State of Alabama at Large My Commission Expires: 1/15/12 STATE OF ALABAMA COUNTY OF SHELBY s/ Debbie Burdette Debbie Burdette Sworn to and subscribed before me this 6th day of May, s/ Donna J. Beaulieu Notary Public State of Alabama at Large My Commission Expires: 1/15/12 Respectfully Submitted, S. Phillip Bahakel & Associates Attorneys for Plaintiffs Plaintiffs Address: c/o S. Phillip Bahakel Attorney at Law s/ S. Phillip Bahakel S. Phillip Bahakel (BAH 006 Donna J. Beaulieu (BEA 042 P.O. Box 88 Pelham, AL Tel.: (

11 P.O. Box 88 Pelham, AL Serve Defendant, Tina Tidmore, at: 7729 Shriner Drive Pinson, AL Serve Defendant, Tidmore Publications, Inc., c/o its registered agent for service of process at: Tina M. Tidmore 7729 Shriner Drive Pinson, AL