Former Stanford scholar King Vanga killed Pamela and Joe Juarez in a automobile crash again in 2021. That’s an undisputed reality. When the Juarez household advised the college about the entire “killing two folks” factor, nevertheless, Vanga sued for defamation, claiming they couldn’t name him a assassin as a result of he had solely been charged with vehicular manslaughter. Because the Stanford Day by day experiences, although, in an precise victory free of charge speech protections, Vanga misplaced his lawsuit in opposition to Priscilla Juarez late final month.
King Vanga, who killed Pamela and Joe Juarez along with his automobile, initially claimed a letter the Juarez household despatched Stanford was defamatory as a result of in it, they known as him a assassin, claimed he was underneath the affect on the time of the crash and asserted that he’d violated the Stanford Code of Conduct. Vanga denied all of these claims. The court docket disagreed, saying the homicide and code of conduct claims had been opinions and thought of protected speech underneath the First Modification. The court docket additionally dominated that Juarez had motive to imagine Vanga was underneath the affect on the time of the crash because it had been reported within the native information regardless of Vanga’s declare on the contrary:
On June 25, 2021, Vanga was concerned in a automobile accident in Atwater, California, which resulted within the deaths of Jose and Pamela Juarez. Vanga was charged with two counts of gross vehicular manslaughter whereas intoxicated, resisting an govt officer, trying to take a peace officer’s firearm and battery upon a peace officer. Vanga pleaded not responsible to those fees.
Vanga allegedly declined a breathalyzer check on the scene, in response to the regulation enforcement officer who responded to the accident. Nonetheless, the officer claimed that Vanga was underneath the affect. In keeping with the police report, the officer “detected a powerful odor of alcoholic beverage emitting from [Vanga’s] breath and individual and noticed his eyes had been purple.”
The media tales that circulated within the subsequent days additionally said Vanga had been underneath the affect of both medicine, alcohol or each, as per regulation enforcement experiences quoted inside the case.
This prompted Priscilla Juarez and a number of different members of the family to write down emails and letters to Stanford. In her e-mail, she wrote she hoped the College would “take correct motion in dismissing this man as an lively scholar of [the] morally prestigious establishment.”
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In December 2021, Vanga threatened to sue Atwater police and California Freeway Patrol for alleged mistreatment and false accusation of a DUI. Vanga alleged he was punched, kicked and tased twice by responding officers. In the meantime, blood samples from the evening of the accident confirmed no presence of medicine or alcohol.
Lawyer Ken “Popehat” White represented Juarez within the go well with, submitting an anti-SLAPP movement to have it dismissed on the grounds that the go well with violated his shopper’s First Modification rights. SLAPP stands for Strategic Lawsuit Towards Public Participation and usually refers to lawsuits filed on questionable grounds with the intent to stifle free speech. Anti-SLAPP statutes enable defendants to have these lawsuits dismissed if the movement is granted and in addition get well any lawyer’s charges.
“There’s a development the place wealthy folks assume that the poor ought to solely have as a lot free speech as they’ll afford. And that to me, [that’s] what this case was about, and that’s why I’m glad we’ve got a instrument just like the anti-SLAPP statute,” White advised the Day by day.
Sadly for the Juarezes, Vanga additionally filed defamation fits in opposition to different members of the family and people nonetheless haven’t been in entrance of a decide. However whereas nothing is assured, it appears like White believes there’s a very good probability they’ll see related outcomes, telling the Day by day, “Each case is just a little completely different as a result of each case is predicated on what that defendant stated of their letter [to Stanford]. However for my part, [Priscilla Juarez’s family members] needs to be very optimistic primarily based on this outcome.”
As we talked about when we first reported on this lawsuit, nobody pressured Vanga to sue the Juarez household. He might have merely let this entire factor go and centered on making ready for his probably conviction. The implications of killing two folks aren’t often pleasing, however odds are, he in all probability would have remained largely unknown outdoors of the Bay Space. As a substitute, he had the audacity to sue the household of the folks he killed along with his automobile, and in doing so, drew the eye of nationwide media. Consequently, way more folks know King Vanga killed Pamela and Joe Juarez along with his automobile in 2021.
It isn’t clear when King Vanga’s prison trial will start, however hopefully, it doesn’t take an excessive amount of longer. He deserves to face the implications for what he did, whether or not he was underneath the affect on the time of the crash or not.