Opinion ID: 1826657
Heading Depth: 7
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Whether the plaintiff wan drawn into public controversy.

Text: A plaintiff is drawn into a public controversy when his actions invite comment and attention, despite the fact that the plaintiff does not actively try or even want to attract the public's attention. See, e.g., Rosanova v. Playboy Enters., Inc., 411 F.Supp. 440 (S.D.Ga.1976), aff'd, 580 F.2d 859 (5th Cir.1978)(holding that Rosanova was a limited-purpose public figure because he consistently associated with underworld contacts and voluntarily engaged in a course of activity that was bound to invite attention and comment). Therefore, a person can be drawn into a public controversy based on his status, position, or association to the public controversy. See Swate v. Schiffers, 975 S.W.2d 70 (Tex.App.1998)(holding that a doctor was drawn into public controversy about the quality of his medical practice in light of the 24 articles written over 10 years describing the atrociousness of the doctor's medical practice). The NCAA and Culpepper argue that Cottrell and Williams were drawn into the controversy because they played a role in the conduct that resulted in The University's being charged with various NCAA rule violations, they participated in the NCAA's investigation into those alleged rule violations, and they were the subject of numerous newspaper articles about the alleged rule violations. According to the NCAA and Culpepper, this evidence established that Cottrell and Williams were in positions that invite[d] attention and comment with respect to their participation in the controversy. The evidence unequivocally established that by their actions Cottrell and Williams invited public scrutiny and should have expected public and media attention with regard to their conduct and involvement in the NCAA investigation of alleged rule violations and the surrounding public controversy. Articles detailed Cottrell's and Williams's conduct throughout the controversy, including their close association with Young, their interviews with Johanningmeier, the alleged rule violations made against them and their responses, and the penalties, or lack thereof, imposed against them. Additionally, the evidence established that Cottrell and Williams proactively engaged in the conduct that was the subject of alleged rule violations and admitted certain violations. Furthermore, their close association with Young, who was the central focus of the investigation, indicated that their conduct invited public attention and comment. Without question, the evidence established that Cottrell and Williams engaged in a course of conduct with respect to the investigation and the surrounding controversy that was bound to invite attention and comment; therefore, Cottrell and Williams were drawn into the public controversy. Indeed, it appears that there are similarities between Cottrell and Williams's being drawn into the public controversy by virtue of their alleged commission of violations of various NCAA rules and a defendant who has been drawn into a public controversy by virtue of being accused of a crime. In Wolston, the United States Supreme Court held that a person who engages in criminal conduct does not automatically become a public figure. The Court noted that the status of the criminal defendant should be determined by focusing on the `nature and extent of an individual's participation in the controversy giving rise to the [alleged] defamation.' 443 U.S. at 167, 99 S.Ct. 2701 (quoting Gertz, 418 U.S. at 352, 94 S.Ct. 2997). In Ruebke v. Globe Communications Corp., 241 Kan. 595, 600-03, 738 P.2d 1246, 1251-53 (1987), the Kansas Supreme Court held that Ruebke, a criminal defendant, was a limited-purpose public figure because of the intense media coverage of the investigation into the triple murders Ruebke had been charged with; Ruebke's voluntary act of turning himself in to the police to seek protective custody; and his arrest and indictment for the three murders. The court held that although no one factor standing alone would be sufficient to convey limited-purpose public-figure status on Ruebke, the factors considered as a whole sufficiently established that Ruebke was drawn into a situation that invited comment. The court stated: Individuals who do not seek publicity or consent to it, but through their own conduct or otherwise become a subject of public interest, may become limited public figures. Those who commit crime or are accused of it may wish to avoid publicity, but are nevertheless persons of public interest, concerning whom the public is entitled to be informed. Restatement (Second) of Torts § 652D, comment f (1976). 241 Kan. at 600, 738 P.2d at 1251. Although Cottrell's and Williams's conduct did not involve criminal activity, it did involve violations of NCAA rules, which impacted The University, its alumni, and the citizens of this State. Given the public nature of the conduct at issue here and the widespread media attention given the controversy, we hold that the evidence established that Cottrell and Williams were drawn into the public controversy.