# Why not prosecute/sue liars in elections? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [October 26, 2004, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-prosecute-sue-liars-in-elections/271167 "2004-10-26T01:22:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Sample\_the\_Dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8797f3/32.png) [@Sample\_the\_Dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sample_the_Dog)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2004, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-prosecute-sue-liars-in-elections/271167/1 "2004-10-26T01:22:25Z")
Wanna know what really chaps my ass? If someone sells me a 25 cent piece of gum and tells me it’s sugar-free, and it contains sugar, they’ve committed a crime. If someone prints an article in the paper full of lies about me that damage my reputation, I can sue them for libel. But these fucking politicians, their campaigns, their proxies, and assholes like slick-boat veteran John O’Neal are allowed to print, say, and perpetuate the most egregious lies with impunity. And we’re talking about a Presidential election. We’re talking about the democratic process. What could be more damaging to the public than spreading lies which affect people’s decisions, which influence their ability to exercise one of their most precious rights as citizens? The damage is enormous. Why can’t we sue these motherfuckers? Why can’t we put them in jail? If everyone who – either knowingly or through reckless disregard – printed substantive lies about a political candidate in newspapers or magazines, or who lied about opposition candidates at campaign rallies, or who told lies on TV were successfully sued or (better yet) slapped with criminal charges for crimes against the public, we’d all be better off. ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2004, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-prosecute-sue-liars-in-elections/271167/2 "2004-10-26T01:24:26Z")
> [@Sample\_the\_Dog](#): > > If someone sells me a 25 cent piece of gum and tells me it’s sugar-free, and it contains sugar, they’ve committed a crime. What crime is that? Specifically. ---
**Author:** ![Sample\_the\_Dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8797f3/32.png) [@Sample\_the\_Dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sample_the_Dog)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2004, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-prosecute-sue-liars-in-elections/271167/3 "2004-10-26T01:24:46Z")
Yikes! I forgot I was in GD! Once I got going, I thought I was in the Pit. ---
**Author:** ![Sample\_the\_Dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8797f3/32.png) [@Sample\_the\_Dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sample_the_Dog)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2004, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-prosecute-sue-liars-in-elections/271167/4 "2004-10-26T01:30:48Z")
> [@Bricker](#): > > What crime is that? False advertising claim. Might be able to get them for violation of nutritional labeling requirements, maybe even endangerment if I’m diabetic. Guidelines for claims such as “sugar free”, “low fat”, even “reduced fat” are very specific and quantified in the US. Granted, I would recover at most 25 cents if I decided to sue. In real terms, I wouldn’t even get that b/c no lawyer would take it. And my chances of finding anyone to prosecute criminally are about nil. But still, it can’t legally be done. I don’t know that it’s illegal to lie about a political opponent. ---
**Author:** ![Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/96bed5/32.png) [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2004, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-prosecute-sue-liars-in-elections/271167/5 "2004-10-26T01:43:16Z")
Even though he didn’t say, **Bricker** seems to share your concerns: [Kerry should sue thr Swift Boat VfT / Bush should sue CBS](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=276336) ---
**Author:** ![Sample\_the\_Dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8797f3/32.png) [@Sample\_the\_Dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sample_the_Dog)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2004, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-prosecute-sue-liars-in-elections/271167/6 "2004-10-26T01:49:19Z")
One important difference b/t this and the Kerry/Bush thread – I think the public should be able to sue or charge, on the grounds that we are damaged by the lies. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2004, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-prosecute-sue-liars-in-elections/271167/7 "2004-10-26T03:04:15Z")
> [@Patty O'Furniture](#): > > Even though he didn’t say, **Bricker** seems to share your concerns: > > [Kerry should sue thr Swift Boat VfT / Bush should sue CBS](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=276336) Yeah, that was a good one, _Bush hiring a trial lawyer!!_ **Bricker** cracks me up. ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2004, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-prosecute-sue-liars-in-elections/271167/8 "2004-10-26T14:42:33Z")
> [@Sample\_the\_Dog](#): > > False advertising claim. Might be able to get them for violation of nutritional labeling requirements, maybe even endangerment if I’m diabetic. Guidelines for claims such as “sugar free”, “low fat”, even “reduced fat” are very specific and quantified in the US. Yes, they are. But are actions that violate these guidelines crimes? > [@Patty O'Furniture](#): > > Even though he didn’t say, **Bricker** seems to share your concerns: > > [Kerry should sue thr Swift Boat VfT / Bush should sue CBS](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=276336) Sure - but please notice I drew a distinction between torts and crimes. I never suggested in that thread that there were potential criminal liabilities afoot. Nor did I suggest that the general public somehow has standing to sue. Bush is damaged by Burkett’s lies, and he should sue. Kerry is damaged by O’Neill’s lies, and he should sue. That was the extent of my thesis. ---
**Author:** ![Mtgman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5a626/32.png) [@Mtgman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mtgman)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2004, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-prosecute-sue-liars-in-elections/271167/9 "2004-10-26T23:50:58Z")
> [@Bricker](#): > > What crime is that? > > Specifically. Varies from state to state, but in New York it is [N.Y. Penal Law § 190.20](http://assembly.state.ny.us/leg/?cl=82&a=45). > [@](#): > > S 190.20 False advertising. > A person is guilty of false advertising when, with intent to promote > the sale or to increase the consumption of property or services, he > makes or causes to be made a false or misleading statement in any > advertisement or publishes any advertisement in violation of chapter > three of the act of congress entitled “Truth in Lending Act” and the > regulations thereunder, as such act and regulations may from time to > time be amended, addressed to the public or to a substantial number of > persons; except that, in any prosecution under this section, it is an > affirmative defense that the allegedly false or misleading statement was > not knowingly or recklessly made or caused to be made. > False advertising is a class A misdemeanor. Citizens harmed by the actions of false advertising are [“entitled to file a civil suit for recovery”](http://www.consumer.state.ny.us/clahm/Clahm-FalseAdvertising.htm#3) in addition to any criminal charges the state may wish to levy. Class A misdemeanors in NY carry [$10,000 fines per Class A committed on the part of a corporation](http://assembly.state.ny.us/leg/?cl=82&a=19). Enjoy, Steven ---
**Author:** ![Mtgman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5a626/32.png) [@Mtgman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mtgman)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2004, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-prosecute-sue-liars-in-elections/271167/10 "2004-10-26T23:55:17Z")
> [@Mtgman](#): > > Class A misdemeanors in NY carry [$10,000 fines per Class A committed on the part of a corporation](http://assembly.state.ny.us/leg/?cl=82&a=19). Damnit, read the wrong line out of the statute. It is up to $5,000 per Class A committed on behalf of a corporation. 10k is for felonies. Enjoy, Steven