David Vitter's lawyer is apparently writing angry letters to newspapers complaining that they wrote that his former aide Brent Furer slashed his girlfriend with a knife. Furer did slash his girlfriend with a knife, and Vitter continued to employ him despite this fact, but because Furer pleaded down to lesser charges, Vitter's lawyers apparently wants the papers to say he just "allegedly" slashed his girlfriend with a knife, while he was holding her hostage for 90 minutes.
The Monroe News Star and The Baton Rouge Advocate both received letters from an attorney for Senator Vitter, demanding clarifications or corrections on minor points. The purpose was apparently to make sure that readers know that despite the fact that Furer did attack his girlfriend, he managed to avoid actually going to jail for it, which I guess Vitter thinks is exculpatory.
The letters threaten no legal action, which is always a sure sign that it's just an attempt to bully a publication into pulling its punches. It's also stupid -- that kinda shit works, sometimes, on inexperienced bloggers, scared of fancy lawyer talk, but newspapers tend to know what they can legally say.
Shares