Jury Rules Against MyPillow's Mike Lindell for Defaming Former Dominion Employee

In a Colorado federal court, a jury determined that Mike Lindell, known for founding MyPillow, defamed Eric Coomer, a past employee of a major voting technology firm, following the 2020 U.S. presidential election.

Coomer initiated a lawsuit after being labeled a traitor by Lindell, and allegations of election theft were aired on Lindell's media platform.

At the time, Coomer was the head of security and product strategy at Dominion Voting Systems in Denver, a company swept up in conspiracy theories by supporters of then-President Trump, who falsely insisted his election loss to Joe Biden was due to systemic fraud.

Dominion has pursued legal action against Fox News for broadcasting false narratives about the company, with additional lawsuits against other conservative media like Newsmax.

In 2021, Newsmax issued an apology to Coomer for promoting unsubstantiated claims about him.

Throughout the trial involving Lindell, Coomer testified about how his professional and personal life was upended by these defamatory remarks. His legal team argued that Lindell knew the claims were untrue or acted with indifference to their veracity.

Lindell's defense countered by claiming his platform was not responsible for comments made by others and that he did not personally defame Coomer.

During the proceedings, Lindell admitted that his financial and business standing had suffered greatly, largely due to advocating against the use of electronic voting systems.

In an effort to financially support his defense and maintain business operations, Lindell has offered promotions and sought contributions from supporters, drawing attention to the cash flow challenges faced.

Examinations of the 2020 election in contested states confirmed President Biden's victory, with no substantial evidence of voter fraud found. Nonetheless, Lindell continued to assert election misconduct without bringing expert witnesses to court.

Lindell's beliefs were influenced by the HBO documentary "Kill Chain" and opinions from Michael Flynn, Trump's former national security advisor, who predicted foreign election interference.

He distanced himself from an account claiming Antifa influenced the election, a narrative pushed by others on his platform. Lindell claimed ignorance of this story during his trial.

While Lindell denied directly accusing Coomer of tampering with election results, he expressed frustration at being blocked from discussing voting machines on Newsmax after its apology to Coomer.

Coomer's legal representatives highlighted the extensive damage these conspiracy theories inflicted on his life, stressing that Lindell's statements were particularly harmful. Coomer mentioned a particularly hurtful comment by Lindell in May 2021 labeling his actions under treason.

Lindell's legal team argued that Coomer's reputation was already compromised due to prior Facebook comments critical of Trump, which Coomer now admits were excessive and inappropriate.