$500M Defamation Lawsuit Against Associated Press’s Smearing of Navy Vet Advances

The legal battle between U.S. Navy veteran Zachary Young and the Associated Press (AP) is moving forward in Florida’s 14th Judicial Circuit Court as Young seeks nearly $500 million in a defamation suit against the news organization.

The case stems from a 2022 article in which the AP described Young’s private rescue efforts during the 2021 Afghanistan withdrawal as “smuggling people out of Afghanistan.”

Young’s lawsuit follows his successful defamation case against CNN earlier this year.

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That lawsuit centered on CNN’s portrayal of Young’s role in evacuating Americans and Afghan allies during the Biden-Harris administration’s military withdrawal.

In the CNN case, Young argued that the network falsely suggested he was engaged in illicit profit-making through black-market operations.

A court ultimately ruled in his favor, clearing him of any criminal wrongdoing.

A jury has found CNN liable for defamation against Zachary Young for lying about his efforts to rescue people from Afghanistan. The jury has awarded Young $5 MILLION in compensatory damages.

CNN ✔️
ABC ✔️

Which lying legacy outlet is next? pic.twitter.com/tzW3MAZ4rW

— Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) January 17, 2025

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The current lawsuit against the Associated Press targets reporting by AP media reporter David Bauder, who used the phrase “smuggle people out of Afghanistan” when covering Young’s previous case against CNN.

Young’s legal team contends that the AP’s language went even further than CNN’s in implying criminal activity.

Navy veteran’s $500M defamation lawsuit against Associated Press advances with first hearing | Brian Flood, Fox News

Zachary Young’s high-stakes defamation lawsuit against the Associated Press continues to inch along in Bay County, Florida, as the U.S. Navy veteran seeks to… pic.twitter.com/A9OK8ZVC4X

— Owen Gregorian (@OwenGregorian) June 1, 2025

On Monday, Young’s attorneys responded to the AP’s motion to dismiss the case.

The AP argued that the lawsuit lacks merit and constitutes an attack on the organization’s free speech rights.

However, Young’s legal team, led by attorney Daniel Lustig, asserted that the motion failed to address the central concern: the implication of criminal conduct through the use of the word “smuggling.”

“It does not dispute that the term ‘human smuggling’ implies criminal conduct, nor does it offer any valid explanation for its use of that term, even though a court previously ruled that Mr. Young committed no crime.

AP’s own Stylebook defines ‘smuggling’ as illegal,” Lustig wrote.

Lustig also referenced numerous AP articles that consistently associate “smuggling” with criminal prosecution.

“Just days before this filing, AP published a story about a man sentenced to 25 years in prison for ‘smuggling people,’ reinforcing that understanding,” he wrote.

“Even after receiving notice, AP refused to retract or revise the statement, not even to use a more accurate term such as ‘evacuate’ or ‘rescue.’”

According to Lustig, the AP did not deny that the word “smuggling” implies criminality, but instead argued that the statement, in context, was not defamatory.

“That is not a defense, it is a concession,” Lustig wrote.

“Under Florida law, if a statement is reasonably capable of a defamatory meaning, it is a question for the jury, not one to be resolved on a motion to dismiss. AP’s attempt to invoke the anti-SLAPP statute to shield such a statement is both legally unsupported and fundamentally flawed.”

Young’s team has also filed a motion to amend the complaint to include a claim for punitive damages.

In a 242-page filing, the attorneys argued the case “exemplifies the very scenario in which punitive damages are warranted to punish and deter such consciously indifferent conduct by a media organization.”

On Tuesday, attorneys for both sides appeared before Judge William S. Henry for a Case Management Conference conducted via Zoom.

Judge Henry, who also presided over the CNN case, listened to arguments regarding the pending motions.

The hearing was procedural, allowing both sides to present their positions on why their motions should proceed.

Judge Henry scheduled the next hearing for July 3, where he is expected to issue rulings on the AP’s motion to dismiss and Young’s motion to amend the complaint.

The Associated Press has previously referred to the lawsuit as “frivolous” in public statements.

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