From Utterly Helpless
Allison and Jerry Benson had been living happily in Settler's Point, their dream waterside neighborhood outside Savannah, Georgia, for three years. Happily, that is, until Korinne Lippy and her fiancé, Craig Zebrowski, moved in across the cul-de-sac in February 2000. Tensions between the families started right away -- when Lippy and Zebrowski complained that the Bensons' Labrador, Bailey, was running unleashed through the neighborhood.é But the trouble didn't end there. According to Allison Benson, Zebrowski actually snarled at her, "I hate kids, and I hope I run over and kill your dog." He denies saying this.
It was this comment that made Allison Benson very scared one Saturday morning in April 2000, when she and her son Christopher were planting flowers in the front yard less than two feet from the street. Zebrowski "peeled out of his driveway and purposely swerved his car like he was going to hit us," she said. Zebrowski denies the incident, but Benson reported him for reckless driving. The police talked to Zebrowski later that day, but no charges were brought.
Three days later, however, Lippy filed a warrant for a "dog at large," forcing the Bensons to go to court. The Bensons assured the judge they now had an electric fence and were let go with a warning, but the family continued to feel harassed. They soon found mysterious eggs and spit on their car. And when plants in their front yard began to die off, the Bensons suspected that the garden had been sprayed with poison. They had a clear idea of who was responsible, but once again Lippy and Zebrowski denied having anything to do with the incidents.
These disputes had continued for two long years when, on September 2, 2002, Korinne Lippy looked out her window and was troubled by what she saw. The two little Benson boys, five-year-old Christopher and two-year-old Andrew, were playing naked in a water bucket in their driveway. Their father, Jerry, was washing his boat a few feet away while he watched the boys splash around. Lippy and Zebrowski had no children, but both deemed the boys' behavior to be disgusting, unsanitary and dangerous. They suspected the boys could suffer sunburns and insect bites that could lead to diseases like West Nile virus.
Lippy, who says she had seen a lot of news about pedophiles that summer, was particularly vexed by the boys' nudity. She decided to call the Division of Family and Children Services (DFCS) to find out if what she saw was considered inappropriate behavior. Lippy told the caseworker at DFCS that Jerry Benson seemed to be "enjoying himself as he looked at his naked boys," and Lippy shared her concern about pedophilia. The caseworker asked Lippy about the Benson children and seemed concerned from her answers that the boys may have often been left alone or unsupervised.
Based on Lippy's call, a DFCS caseworker visited the Bensons and told the family that the department had received a call about the treatment of their children. The caseworker then inspected everything from the contents of the Bensons' refrigerator to the closets in the boys' bedroom, searching for anything suspicious. Allison and Jerry were shocked and scared. They feared that their children would be taken away if DFCS suspected abuse. Allison said she felt utterly helpless.
The Lawsuit
The caseworker questioned each of the boys alone about their parents. But the investigation didn't end there: Neighbors were interviewed, and Christopher's elementary school was called. The caseworker even checked with the hospital where Allison Benson worked as a physician assistant to see if the boys had been admitted for any traumas. Allison worried about what her co-workers and supervisor might think. "Since this happened, I'm afraid people are watching me," Allison said. The Bensons feared a rumor mill would label them child abusers.Even when they were finally cleared by DFCS and found not to be neglectful or abusive in any way, they wondered what would happen next. "Lippy and Zebrowski are malicious," Allison said. "Are they going to call DFCS until they have my children taken from me?"
Being investigated for child neglect and threatened with losing their children was the last straw for the Bensons. Though the caseworker never fingered Lippy as the source of the call to DFCS, the Bensons already suspected their meddlesome neighbor. They sued Lippy for slander and filed motions with the court forcing DFCS to confirm that Lippy had made the call.
Allison Benson felt Korinne Lippy had called in bad faith and wanted her accuser to be held responsible. But Lippy responded that her call to DFCS was nothing more than a query about appropriate behavior. When the caseworker then asked her questions, Lippy, of course, answered them.
Did Korinne Lippy slander the Bensons? You Be the Judge
Verdict: The Case of the Nosy Neighbors
A jury initially ruled that Lippy had committed slander and awarded the Bensons $100,000 plus attorney's fees. But the Court of Appeals overturned the decision, ruling that the Bensons had to show that Lippy had accused them of a crime punishable by law or a debasing act that would exclude them from society. In looking at the plain meaning of Lippy's words, the court found she had not slandered the Bensons by inquiring about her concerns.Although Lippy said the boys were unsupervised much of the time and worried that they might be in harm's way, she did not say they were actually hurt or suffering from "excessive mental or physical pain." The court did not believe that Lippy's words would lead anyone to think the Bensons had committed the crime of cruelty to children. Similarly, Lippy's statement that Jerry Benson enjoyed watching his sons did not necessarily imply that his enjoyment was inappropriate. And Lippy's query about pedophilia was not explicitly directed at Benson. Inquiring about behavior is not the same as accusing someone of a crime.
The appellate court held that while a jury might find Lippy's actions "reprehensible," there was no evidence that her comments would lead a reasonable person to believe the Bensons had committed crimes, which is the threshold for slander.