About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline
LOG IN
LOG IN

38 Ga. L. Rev. 717 (2003-2004)
Rhetorical Hyperbole and the Reasonable Person Standard: Drawing the Line between Figurative Expression and Factual Defamation

handle is hein.journals/geolr38 and id is 741 raw text is: RHETORICAL HYPERBOLE AND THE REASONABLE PERSON STANDARD: DRAWING THE LINE BETWEEN FIGURATIVE EXPRESSION AND FACTUAL DEFAMATION I. INTRODUCTION On November 11, 1999, the Dallas Observer reported that a local judge had ordered a first-grade child be detained in a juvenile detention center for ten days while awaiting criminal charges relating to her report on a classic children's book.' The article, which appeared in the News section of the paper, was written by staff-writer Rose Farley and entitled Stop the Madness.2 In it, Farley reported that Darlene A. Whitten, a judge who previously presided over the juvenile court of Denton County, Texas, had ordered that the first-grader be detained at the Denton County Juvenile Detention Center in response to the child's writing of a book report on Maurice Sendak's award-winning children's book, Where the Wild Things Are.' The article quoted Judge Whitten as saying to the six-year-old girl that [any implication of violence in a school situation, even if it was just contained in a first-grader's book report, is reason enough for panic and overreaction, and that [it's time for you to grow up, young lady, and it's time for us to stop treating kids like children.4 Farley quoted Bruce Isaacks, the district attorney for Denton County, as stating, [wle've considered having her certified to stand trial as an adult, but even in Texas there are some limits.5 The article reported that courthouse security officers ordered the six-year-old be shackled after a review of her school record revealed she had received reprimands for spraying a boy with pineapple juice and sitting on her feet.6 1 New Times, Inc. v. Isaacks, 91 S.W.3d 844, 849-50 (Tex. App. 2002). 2 Id. Id. Id. at 850. 6 Id. 6 Id. 717

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Short-term subscription options include 24 hours, 48 hours, or 1 week to HeinOnline.

Purchase Access

Contact us for annual subscription options:

Contact Us

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

Log In

profiles profiles most