ASHBURN, Va. -- Washington Redskins owner Daniel Snyder has dropped his defamation lawsuit against Washington City Paper and one of its writers.
Both Snyder and the newspaper issued statements Saturday night announcing the news, but with different interpretations.
In an email from the Redskins publicity office, Snyder said that in court filings, "... the Washington City Paper and its writer have admitted that certain assertions contained in the article that are the subject of the lawsuit were, in fact, unintended by the defendants to be read literally as true. Therefore, we see nothing further to be gained at this time through continuing the lawsuit."
In its own statement, the newspaper said, "We are pleased that Dan Snyder has finally ended his gratuitous litigation against Washington City Paper and staff writer Dave McKenna."
The newspaper repeated its own assertion that the article never said any of the libelous things that were alleged, and said the lawsuit was intended to silence the paper. The statement said the litigation had cost Washington City Paper more than $34,000.
"Despite those costs, we are proud that we never wavered or allowed ourselves to be bullied, ultimately leading Snyder to dismiss his case," the paper said.
Snyder said he prefers now to focus on the coming football season, and the paper said it hopes Snyder can focus his energy on "making our shared home team as good as it can be."
Snyder had wanted $1 million in damages. He contended a Nov. 19 cover story, "The Cranky Redskins Fan's Guide to Dan Snyder," libeled Snyder by stating that he committed a crime.
Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press
