Judge again tells Devin Nunes he can’t sue Twitter over fake cow’s tweets

A Virginia judge late last month reiterated a ruling that dismissed Twitter from a lawsuit Rep. Devin Nunes filed last year alleging the social media company allowed anonymous users to criticize him unfairly on its platform.

The written decision by Judge John Marshall followed a June 24 ruling that Nunes through conservative media said did not bar him from suing the company over tweets by anonymous writers who heckle him under the personas of a cow and his mother.

“Twitter remains a party to this lawsuit,” Nunes’ attorney Steven Biss told the conservative news website Breitbart. “Reports that Twitter was dismissed from the suit are absolutely false.”

Marshall issued the second ruling on July 24 saying his previous ruling did, in fact, mean Nunes could not sue Twitter in the case because social media platforms under federal law generally are not liable for comments made by their users.

“The Court finds that (federal law) provides Twitter with immunity from civil liability in this action,” Marshall wrote. “Accordingly, all claims alleged against Twitter in this action are dismissed with prejudice.”

Four days later, Nunes filed a new complaint in the same court again attempting to sue Twitter over tweets by Republican political strategist Liz Mair, the Twitter account known as “Devin Nunes’ Cow” and the account known as “Devin Nunes’ Mom.”

Nunes accused Twitter of “aiding and abetting” the tweets by the three users.

It is unclear how Marshall will respond to the amended complaint. Under federal law, Nunes and Biss either need other parties’ consent or the court’s permission for the amended complaint to go forward.

Joe Meadows, a defamation attorney based in Arlington, Virginia, said the judge’s order on dismissal will likely be a “fatal roadblock” to Nunes’ and Biss’ new complaint.

“It’s a pretty dicey prospect of being able to amend a complaint after a court has already ordered that it be dismissed with prejudice,” Meadows said, adding he would be “surprised” if the court accepted it.

A Twitter spokesperson said in a statement to McClatchy Thursday that the company “views the court’s decision as a dismissal of Twitter from the lawsuit.”

“More broadly, Twitter strongly believes the court made the right decision to dismiss the claims raised by Congressman Nunes,” the Twitter spokesperson said. “Twitter enforces the Twitter Rules impartially for everyone who uses our service around the world, regardless of their background or political affiliation.”

Even without the amended complaint, the lawsuit was still going forward against the two anonymous Twitter accounts and Mair. Mair filed to dismiss the lawsuit on Monday, saying that her tweets about Nunes were protected First Amendment speech and therefore not defamation.

Nunes, R-Tulare, and Biss have not been able to find out the identities of the writers behind the two anonymous accounts and have not been able to serve them with lawsuits.

Nunes a year ago began suing media organizations and critics, alleging in the cases that various organizations conspired to damage his reputation. In Virginia courts, aside from Twitter, he has sued CNN, The Washington Post and McClatchy — the parent company of the largest newspaper in his district, The Fresno Bee. McClatchy has called Nunes’ lawsuit against the company a “baseless attack on local journalism.”

Nunes’ lawsuit against Esquire magazine — which published a story about Nunes’ family farm moving to Iowa — was dismissed in Iowa federal court Wednesday.

A lawsuit Nunes filed against the investigative research firm Fusion GPS in federal court in Virginia was dismissed earlier this year, but Nunes filed a new complaint to continue the lawsuit.

His lawsuits against media organizations coincide with his rise to national prominence as one of President Donald Trump’s allies in Congress, where Nunes has defended Trump first during Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russia’s interference with the 2016 election and again during impeachment hearings last fall.

Nunes now is among the top political fundraisers in Congress, bringing in $4.5 million from April through June. Some of his best fundraising days follow news about his lawsuits. For instance, he raised $144,000 the day he filed a lawsuit against The Washington Post.