Moses v. Roland

• Decision Date: 25 March 2021
• Docket Number: No. W2019-00902-COA-R3-CV,W2019-00902-COA-R3-CV
• Parties: PAMELA MOSES v. TERRY ROLAND ET AL.
• Court: Tennessee Court of Appeals

PAMELA MOSES v. TERRY ROLAND ET AL.

No. W2019-00902-COA-R3-CV

COURT OF APPEALS OF TENNESSEE AT JACKSON

December 8, 2020 Session

March 25, 2021

Appeal from the Circuit Court for Shelby County

No. CT-005257-17

William B. Acree, Senior Judge

A former county commissioner appeals the trial court's decision finding him liable for defamatory statements made about a private individual during a county legislative meeting. Following a thorough review of the record, we reverse.

Tenn. R. App. P. 3 Appeal as of Right; Judgment of the Circuit Court Reverse and Remanded

J. STEVEN STAFFORD, P.J., W.S., delivered the opinion of the court, in which ARNOLD B. GOLDIN, and KENNY ARMSTRONG, JJ., joined.

John Marshall Jones, Memphis, Tennessee, for the appellant, Terry Roland.

Pamela Moses, Memphis, Tennessee, Pro se.

OPINION

I. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

This case involves a claim of slander. On June 21, 2017, the Law Enforcement Corrections and Courts Committee ("the Law Enforcement Committee") of the Shelby County Board of Commissioners held a regularly scheduled meeting. The agenda for the meeting was "a Resolution approving a contract with Clarion Security for security guard services at specified locations throughout Shelby County Government." Among those present for this meeting were Defendant/Appellant Terry Roland, an elected member of the Shelby County Board of Commissioners,¹ and Plaintiff/Appellee Pamela Moses, an unelected community member and organizer. During the discussion of the securitycontract, the question of whether the county judges supported the new contract was raised. The Law Enforcement Committee Chairperson Billingsley responded that a meeting was scheduled for all of the Shelby County judges on June 23, 2017, so as to get the judges' input as to the security contract and their security concerns. Specifically, Chairperson Billingsley stated that

[Q]uite frankly, I think their biggest concerns are — and it is really hard to do because you are going to have some people coming and going in these positions, but their concerns are that — but you are probably more familiar with this than me, but there are certain people that have been identified as threats to the Court; that you need someone to put an eyeball on and so the judges want to be sure that [the representative of Clarion Security] and her companies know who those individuals are. I do not understand the process in the Courthouse. I guess I will learn on Friday how we do that. You know, the City of Memphis — I am just bringing this up — but the City of Memphis got in a lot of trouble for identifying people that they didn't want in City Hall. So, I will be asking for a lot of clarification — and I will also ask, if it is appropriate, if the Sheriff's Department would please join me on Friday when we meet with these judges to be sure that we are dotting our i's and crossing our t's.

Thereafter, Mr. Roland made the following comment:

There is a list that we have got here in Shelby County — it is based upon facts and the ones that aren't allowed — some of them may be here in this audience right now that have to be — in other words, what they did was considered criminal towards the judges. So, there is a difference between a hit list and when you assault or threaten a judge. I mean, that even carries a little stiffer consequences when you threaten a judge.

The meeting continued with additional discussion of the security contract. At the conclusion of the meeting, Mr. Roland was permitted the opportunity to make a final remark on his decision to abstain from voting on the security contract. As the conclusion of his remarks on the propriety of switching security companies without cause, Mr. Roland made the following statement: "And I want to make sure — and this lady right here is the one that Homeland Security had better be watching. Okay, Ms. Moses, over here, because she is not supposed to be in here without a — somebody escorting her."

A meeting of the full Shelby County Board of Commissioners next occurred on June 26, 2017. Ms. Moses was initially given two minutes to speak at this meeting, in which she objected to the contract with Clarion Security. Additionally, Ms. Moses attempted to read a letter objecting to the statements made by Mr. Roland at the prior Law EnforcementCommittee meeting.² Because Ms. Moses' time expired, another individual used her time to read Ms. Moses' letter in full:

I am writing to you in regards of the comments you made about Pamela Moses last week. Commissioner Roland, you referred to her as a terrorist and said that Homeland Security should be watching Ms. Moses. I find these comments to be disrespectful. I feel it was done because of the gender and her race. The said comments were made in the presence of 80 or more people at the hearing with the intention of portraying me as a dangerous person (meaning her). This is not the first time that you have made disrespectful references. Your behavior is uncouth and inappropriate for you to be an elected official. Several media outlets and distinguished members of law enforcement heard these comments. I have consulted with legal counsel and I am prepared to take legal actions against you in your personal and official capacity and I am requesting a sincere apology to Ms. Moses.[³]

Mr. Roland responded as follows:

What she said is absolutely true. I did say that about Ms. Moses and I stand by it. Ms. Moses has been in the — as a matter of fact, she has threatened judges . . . . She has threatened everybody . . . . She has threatened everybody, but I can tell you, this dog ain't gonna run, okay? And I stand by everything I said the other day and other than that, I have nothing else to say to her.

In December 2017, Ms. Moses filed a complaint for damages against Mr. Roland in the Circuit Court of Tennessee for the Thirtieth Judicial District at Memphis ("the trial court"), alleging defamation and negligent infliction of emotional distress ("NIED"). Ms. Moses subsequently filed various amended complaints, adding Shelby County and then-mayor of Shelby County Mark Luttrell as defendants, and also alleging intentional infliction of emotional distress ("IIED"). On August 9, 2018, the trial court granted in part and denied in part Appellant's motion for summary judgment or, alternatively, to strike Ms. Moses' notice of filing and her second amended complaint. In ruling on Appellant's motion, the trial court found that there was a genuine issue of material fact as to whether Appellant's statements were willful, wanton, or grossly negligent, such that he would not be immune under Tennessee Code Annotated section 29-20-201(b)(2). Furthermore, the court found that there was an issue of fact as to whether Mr. Roland had republished one of his statements such that the statute of limitations would not have run on Ms. Moses' claims, and as to whether said statement was relevant to some of Ms. Moses' other claims. Therefore, the court determined that summary judgment was not proper on Appellant'sclaims that he was immune from suit and that Ms. Moses' claims were time barred. However, the trial court granted summary judgment in Appellant's favor on the NIED and IIED claims, finding that the gravamen of Ms. Moses' claims was slander. The trial court also granted Appellant's motion to strike Ms. Moses' jury demand in her second amended complaint.

The trial court held a bench trial on April 1, 2019. At the beginning of trial, the trial court orally dismissed the claims against Shelby County and Mayor Luttrell. At trial, Mr. Roland claimed that he was provided an official report from Sheriff's Deputies representing Homeland Security that stated that Ms. Moses was known to have "outbursts" in meetings and that she

had an order of protection against her and that she stalked judges and that she had trouble at the Juvenile Court and that she had had trouble at Federal Court. And that she was on Homeland Security, on their list to watch. When she enters a County building she has to be escorted.

Mr. Roland stated that this information was given to him both in 2012 or 2013 after he was newly elected, and merely "a year before" the June 2017 meetings. Mr. Roland, however, did not produce a copy of the alleged report, as he testified that he no longer serves as a county commissioner and no longer had access to the document. Mr. Roland also claimed that he was never provided with a copy of the report to retain for his own records.

Mr. Roland further testified that his comment that Ms. Moses "threatened everybody" was in reference to Juvenile Judge Dan Michael and General Sessions Judge Phyllis Gardner. According to Mr. Roland, the Sheriff's Deputies supplied him with the information concerning the alleged threat against Judge Michael. Mr. Roland also testified that he has personally heard Ms. Moses threaten to "get" Judge Gardner when Ms. Moses was protesting outside a county building. Mr. Roland admitted, however, that he had never seen an order of any kind that prevented Ms. Moses from entering all county buildings unescorted.

The record contains a final order of protection entered in the Shelby County General Sessions Court on or about February 17, 2015. Therein, the general sessions court found that Ms. Moses has engaged in a campaign of harassment against Judge Gardner. As such, the general sessions court prohibited Ms. Moses from having any contact with Judge Gardner, from coming about Judge Gardner's workplace "unless [Ms. Moses] ha[s] legitimate business in the courthouse."⁴ If Ms. Moses did have such business, she was to notify courthouse security personnel of her presence and the existence of the order of protection immediately upon entrance to the building. It appears that Ms. Moses appealedthis order of protection to circuit court; Judge Gardner eventually voluntarily dismissed the case on or about October 15, 2015. The testimony regarding Mr. Roland's knowledge of the order of protection is somewhat confusing and...