SPECIAL COMMENTARY
No Rush To Judgment
fearful for their safety. Based on what
on accurate and balanced information.
they overhead, and incidents that had
With such information, we believe
he verdict in a Denver
occurred in the neighborhood, they
fair-minded people will understand
courtroom against the Anti-
related to ADL that they felt they
that ADL was responsibly doing its
Defamation League in the
were
the target of an antisemitic cam-
job to help a Jewish couple frightened
case of Quigley vs. ADL
paign
to drive them out of the neigh-
about efforts to isolate and intimidate
was a shock and, in our view, unjusti-
borhood.
them;
that
we
did
not
make
a
rush
to
fied ("Defamed By Defamation's
Because of the family's fears over
judgment, but did due diligence and
Watchdog," May 19). We have already
what they perceived as threatening
only
spoke
pub-
begun the appeal
comments from the neighbors, and
licly after having
process and hope
the question of the legality of these
done so.
that justice will be
intercepted conversations, the ADL
To correct one
served and it will
immediately referred the family to a
major
misrepre-
be reversed.
private attorney. That attorney,
sentation,
ADL
The jury in this
based on legal research and conver-
did
not
wiretap
case found the
sations with the Jefferson County
and
did
not
advise
ADL and/or the
district attorney, determined that the
the
Aronson
fami-
ADL's Mountain
intercepted conversations were legal.
ly to intercept
States regional
The
jury's finding against the ADL
their neighbors'
director liable for
BY HOWARD P. BERKOWITZ
of
liability
under the Federal . Wire-
phone calls.
claims of defama-
AND
tap Act was apparently based on
Because
the
Aron-
tion, invasion of
ABRAHAM H. FORMAN
their finding that the Aronsons'
son family had
privacy and viola-
attorneys were the ADL's agents.
their
own
attor-
tion of the federal
- Therefore, the fact that the attorneys
neys
and
because
wiretap act, and
used the intercepted - phone calls in
the Jefferson
awarded $10.5
preparing the Aronsons' civil com-
County district attorney's office was
million in damages, the bulk of the
plaint against their neighbors was
investigating the matter, ADL never
damages being punitive. Making the
attributed to the ADL. It was not
obtained the tapes of these intercepted
verdict even harder to accept is the
until early December 1994, when
conversations, and did not listen to
willingness of some in the media and
this complaint had been filed in fed-
any tapes.
in the community to comment on the
eral court, the press began reporting
When
the
Aronson
family
first
con-
case in a way that misrepresents the
on the case, and the district attorney
in
October
1994,
they
ADL
tacted
facts. Therefore, we believe it is
brought charges against the neigh-
said
they
had
inadvertently
overheard
important to set the record straight so
bors, that it was learned the Federal
their
neighbors'
conversations
through
that readers can make their judgments
Wiretap
Act had been amended to
their police scanner. This is the type
prohibit
the
interception of cordless
of scanner that can be bought at any
Howard P. Berkowitz is national
phone
conversations.
electronics store and used to listen to
chairman and Abraham H. Foxman is
That change in the law is what
police and fire calls. They told the
national director of the Anti-Defama-
prompted the district attorney's
League
that
they
felt
frightened
and
tion League.
New York
T
office to drop most of the charges
against the Aronsons' neighbors. The
neighbors subsequently brought suit
against the district attorney's office,
the sheriff's department (which had
investigated the matter for the DA),
and the Aronsons' attorneys. These
parties released all claims against
each other in settlements reached
among the Aronsons, their neigh-
bors, the district attorney, the sher-
iff's Department and the Aronsons'
attorneys. Although the ADL also
attempted to reach a settlement with
the neighbors as early as 1995, and
continued to try and resolve the
matter up until trial began, we were
unsuccessful.
In the motion filed by the ADL
after the verdict, we argue that the
jury's verdict is not supported by the
evidence presented at trial, and that
there was no evidence to support the
jury's award of punitive damages.
The ADL's motion asks the district
court to set the verdict aside, elimi-
nate or reduce the damages. If
appropriate, we will appeal the dis-
trict court's judgment to the U.S.
Court of Appeals for the 10th Cir-
cuit.
We have faith in the judicial sys-
tem and believe that the final deci-
sion will be the right one. But what-
ever the outcome, the ADL will con-
tinue its important work as the
world's leading organization assisting
victims of antisemitism, prejudice
and bigotry. O
LETTERS
Dr. Laura
Misinforms
I was saddened to read your recent
review of Dr. Laura Schlessinger's new
book ("Perfect Parenting," May 12,
page 103).
Though reference was made to
the controversy that surrounds her
views on homosexuality, it was not
clarified that Dr. Laura has a radio
audience of over 18 million loyal lis-
teners to which she regularly refers
to gays and lesbians as "deviants"
and "biological errors." Such refer-
ences should remind us of Nazi
rhetoric used to dehumanize the
Jews of Europe.
Dr. Laura justifies her attack on
homosexuals by hiding behind the
moral doctrines of Orthodox
6/2
2000
26
Judaism. This is a dangerous ploy
that begs freedom of speech and tol-
erance for her viewpoint, even as Dr.
Laura uses the mass media to spew
her selected brand of hatred and
misinformation.
The fact is that gays and lesbians
in America live under the same kind
of social stigma suffered by our
ancestors in Europe. It is still per-
fectly acceptable, and well tolerated,
to say whatever you like about this
"under-class." Unfortunately, we fail
to remember that such disposable
people are our sons and daughters,
brothers and sisters, nephews and
nieces, aunts and uncles. Some are
even our mothers and fathers and
grandparents.
It took a Holocaust for Jews to
come to understand the evil conse-
quences of antisemitic speech. What
will it take before we recognize the
danger of Dr. Laura's words?
Brad Graber
West BloOmfield
Iranian Spies
Should Be Free
I read with special interest your article
on the false arrest and prosecution of
13 Iranian Jews ("Getting the Word
Out," April 28, page 12). Having
been involved with this case since its
beginning last year, it is reassuring to
know the people of southeast Michi-
gan are actively working with me to
support this cause.
On.the eve of the Jewish holiday of
Passover in 1999, 13 Jews were arrest-
ed without evidence by the authorities
of the Islamic Republic of Iran and
falsely accused of spying for the Unit-
ed States and Israel. The arrests were
widely viewed as an attempt by Iran
hardliners to undermine moderate
President Mohammadd Khatemi's
opening to the West. I believe these
fabricated charges should be dropped
immediately and the individuals
released forthwith.
After the arrests, I worked with my
colleagues in Congress to develop
House Concurrent Resolution 128.
became a cosponsor of this resolution
on June 16, 1999, which condemns
these arrests, calls for the prisoners'
immediate release and urges the Clin-
ton Administration to work through
the United Nations to force a solu-
tion. The House International Rela-
tions Committee voted unanimously
in support of this resolution, and the
full House was prepared to pass the
.