Idaho Supreme Court hears appeal in Coeur d'Alene Pride defamation case

Post Falls blogger Summer Bushnell took her fight over Coeur d’Alene’s Pride in the Park dispute to the Idaho Supreme Court, asking justices to overturn the $1.1 million civil judgment that a Kootenai County jury entered against her after finding she defamed drag performer Eric Posey.

The case grew out of Posey’s performance at Coeur d’Alene City Park in June 2022. Jurors unanimously found that Bushnell posted an edited video that made it appear Posey exposed himself to children during a show at the City Park bandshell, when the unedited footage showed no exposure occurred. The jury awarded Posey $926,000 in compensatory damages and $250,000 in punitive damages.

Bushnell represented herself at Thursday’s hearing in Lewiston and told the court that “The damages were inflated.” She argued that the verdict form and the way the case went to the jury assumed wrongdoing and that the punitive damages were not clearly tied to her conduct. Justice Gregory W. Moeller pressed back, questioning whether altering a video and circulating false accusations online was serious enough to justify punitive damages.

The false claim did not stay local. After Bushnell posted the video and urged viewers to contact law enforcement, the edited version spread widely, drew thousands of views and prompted national attention. Coeur d’Alene police investigated the allegations, and prosecutors declined to file charges after the unedited footage showed no evidence of indecent exposure. Posey later testified that the online accusations led to harassment and death threats.

The appeal gives the Idaho Supreme Court a chance to shape a warning that reaches far beyond this one case. For local bloggers, small publishers and organizers who post video from contentious public events, the question is no longer abstract: how far can a private citizen go in amplifying claims about a public confrontation before a jury can hold that person liable for defamation? That question carries extra weight in Kootenai County, where the same 2022 Pride event also drew national scrutiny after 31 Patriot Front members were arrested nearby and charged with conspiracy to riot.

The justices also questioned Bushnell’s written citations, and one justice suggested some of the references may not exist, raising concerns about the accuracy of the appeal papers. The case, Posey v. Bushnell, No. 52072-2024, now awaits a written opinion that could matter well beyond Coeur d’Alene.