By Greg Hazley
A federal appeals court on Tuesday breathed new life into a libel suit against ABC's "20/20" which was dismissed at trial in 2007.
The suit brought by the Rev. Frederick Price of Los Angeles church claimed that reporter John Stossel played an "out of context" clip of Price preaching about greed: "I live in a 25 room mansion, I have my own $6 million yacht, I have my own private jet and I have my own helicopter and I have seven luxury automobiles."
Sitrick and Company is working with Price's legal team, which claimed a victory with this week's decision and said Price was not speaking of himself in the sermon but was preaching about a hypothetical person who had great wealth but lived a spiritually unfulfilled life.
The ABC March 23, 2007 report, which covered preachers whose lavish lifestyles are supported by their congregations, noted Price "boasts" about his wealth.
The case could ostensibly have implications for former Obama cabinet member Shirley Sherrod, who has sued conservative pundit Andrew Breitbart claiming libel for editing her speech and thereforce altering the context.
The decision sends the Price case back to a lower court for a jury trial in which Price's team will have to prove malice on the part of ABC producers and Stossel, who is now at FOX.
"Preaching prosperity from God and boasting are not the same. ABC used his own words to falsely portray him as haughty and immodest, when his words actually reflect humility and modesty," said Price's attorney Anthony Glassman via Sitrick.
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