Thunder Thornton, left by the wall, spoke earlier to Marion County audience about Aetna Mountain project
A judge has ruled against Chattanooga developer John "Thunder" Thornton on a libel suit he brought against two Marion County citizens who spoke out against his newest project on the back side of Aetna Mountain.
The ruling by Judge Justin Angel was in favor of Joey Blevins and Ronnie Kennedy (who has since died) for their Facebook comments contrary to the River Gorge Ranch project.
He directed that the Thornton firm pay court costs and the legal expenses of the two citizens.
Judge Angel did not put down any monetary sanctions against Mr. Thornton, saying, "He is a well-respected and renowned real estate developer and businessman in our state. He has a legitimate and a financial interest in protecting the value and reputation of his properties and investments."
The Marion citizens had made comments saying that the site of the mountaintop development was on top of numerous old mines.
Judge Angel ruled for the citizens based on the Tennessee Public Participation Act, which he said is meant to insure First Amendment rights and allow people to speak freely.
The Thornton firm said a number of prospective clients for the development backed out due to the old mine concerns.
Judge Angel said those concerns were also raised in the media and not just by Facebook posters.
He found that the project was not unsafe and that the Thornton suit was not brought with malice. He said the Thornton group's own survey found evidence of past mining, but also found that due to at least 120 feet of Newton sandstone that the homesites are safe.
Judge Angel said, "The court is confident that the plaintiff, Thunder Thornton, will be able to build a safe and beautiful community on Aetna Mountain."
Attorney Daniel A. Horwitz of Nashville, lead counsel for Joey Blevins, said, "The court's order dismissing Mr. Thornton's SLAPP-suit fully vindicates Mr. Blevins, who should be lauded for performing a public service here.
"The outrageous abuse of the legal system perpetrated by Mr. Thornton and his misbehaving counsel will be addressed in due course. For now, we look forward to receiving Mr. Thornton's prompt payment of Mr. Blevins' legal bill."
Dane Bradshaw, president of Thunder Enterprises, said, "Our primary goal was accomplished as the judge’s ruling re-emphasized that we have a safe and developable mountain community. His ruling states, “There is no evidence that the property is dangerous or unsafe” which discredits all the unsupported attempts by a few individuals to discredit our successful development.
"With 1,096 direct and indirect employees and their families associated with our company, we will always defend our reputation, and the judge recognized that by denying such claims that our suit was without malice."