DA Jim Martin settles defamation lawsuit against Lehigh Valley blogger who accused him of fixing cases [The Morning Call]

Lehigh County District Attorney Jim Martin has settled his defamation and invasion of privacy lawsuit against blogger Bill Villa seven years after filing it, and only weeks before a scheduled trial.

Martin sued Villa of Allentown, radio host Bobby “Gunther” Walsh and radio station WAEB, claiming Villa tarnished his reputation online and on Walsh’s radio show by calling Martin “crooked” and “corrupt,” and saying his office “fixes” criminal cases. The suit alleged Villa falsely and maliciously accused Martin of unethical and criminal conduct as district attorney.

Villa, who lost his daughter in a 2006 drunken-driving crash, was critical of Martin’s prosecution of the driver.

Martin’s lawyer said Friday that Villa’s homeowner’s insurance carrier would pay $57,500 to settle the case, which was scheduled to go to trial May 16 in Lehigh County Court. WAEB’s parent company, iHeartMedia Inc., settled Martin’s claims against the radio station and Walsh in 2019 for an undisclosed amount.

Martin filed claims as a creditor in iHeartMedia’s bankruptcy case, seeking $5 million, but court records don’t indicate whether any payment was made to Martin. Martin’s lawyer said the settlement is governed by a confidentiality agreement and Martin’s office denied a Right-to-Know request saying Martin filed the suit as an individual and the settlement is not a public record.

“Mr. Martin is pleased to have been able to settle the matter both with the radio station and Mr. Villa’s insurance carrier,” his lawyer Armando Brigandi said.

Villa’s attorney Michael Shay did not return a call. Villa could not be reached Friday afternoon. In court filings and in a Philadelphia Inquirer article Villa accused Martin of using the lawsuit to trample his First Amendment right to free speech.

The settlement comes about a month after Erie Insurance Exchange filed a petition to intervene in the case, noting that Villa’s homeowner’s insurance precludes coverage for suits for libel, slander or defamation of character if the statement was knowingly untrue. Erie said coverage may not be available for some or all of Martin’s claims against Villa.

The insurance company said it should be permitted to submit questions for the jury to determine whether Villa knew that Martin would suffer damages and whether Erie was required to indemnify Villa.

Martin alleged in the suit that Villa made false statements about him while a guest on Walsh’s show at least 11 times from Feb. 20 to Aug. 4, 2014.

Martin cites an example from a Feb. 24, 2014, broadcast that quotes Villa as saying to Walsh:

“Jim Martin arranged, in secret, a bargained plea deal with Sheena’s killer and his family. He scheduled a court date, you know, to make it official, and then he never notified our family about it. We weren’t invited to the guilty plea hearing.”

In a motion to throw out the suit before trial, Villa’s lawyer argued the statements were protected because they were opinions based in fact, that Martin could not prove they were false or that Villa knew they were false and Martin had not presented any evidence that he was harmed.

Villa’s daughter, 25-year-old dance teacher Sheena Villa, was a passenger in a sport-utility vehicle driven by Robert E. LaBarre, 30, when LaBarre lost control of the vehicle around 3:15 a.m. and crashed on Parkway Boulevard in Allentown on March 24, 2006.

Tests showed that LaBarre’s blood-alcohol level at the time of the crash was .24 — three times the legal limit. Police also found that he was driving 85 mph. He pleaded guilty to vehicular homicide in 2007 and was sentenced to 5½ to 12 years in state prison.

After LaBarre was sent to prison on the criminal charges, a Lehigh County civil jury in 2009 awarded Sheena Villa’s parents and estate $3.1 million in damages, finding LaBarre 85 percent liable for her death.

Morning Call reporter Peter Hall can be reached at 610-820-6581 or [email protected].

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