Men Falsely Portrayed As Boston Bombing Suspects Sue New York Post For Defamation

After being falsely portrayed as the suspects in the Boston Marathon bombing, a Massachusetts teenager and his 24-year-old friend filed a defamation lawsuit against the New York Post, according to the Boston Globe. A photograph of the pair made the cover of the Post with the headline “Bag Men: Feds seek these two pictured at Boston Marathon.”

Salaheddin Barhoum, 16, and Yassine Zaimi are suing the Post for libel, negligent infliction of emotional distress, and invasion of privacy — and they are seeking damages.

Per the Globe:

“The front page would lead a reasonable reader to believe that plaintiffs had bombs in their bags, that they were involved in causing the Boston Marathon bombing,” according to the court complaint. The lawsuit asserts the newspaper subjected the friends to “scorn, hatred, ridicule, or contempt in the minds of a considerable and respectable segment of the community.”

At the time, the Post stood by its portrayal with editor Col Allan issuing the following statement:

We stand by our story. The image was emailed to law enforcement agencies yesterday afternoon seeking information about these men, as our story reported. We did not identify them as suspects.

The cover triggered significant criticism — including from ABC News President David Westin who said it was “not just wrong, but inexcusable.”

The full report here.

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