L. Lin Wood, recently retained by the family of Covington Catholic High School student Nick Sandmann issued a statement Friday afternoon promising a “multitude of civil lawsuits” against those who made “false accusations and threats” against Sandmann over the incident involving him and Native American activist Nathan Phillips last Friday in Washington, D.C.
Sandmann, 16, from Covington, Kentucky, was in D.C. with classmates from the private school for the annual March for Life. He and his fellow students were confronted by Phillips, 64, from Michigan, who was in town for the Indigenous Peoples March, at the Lincoln Memorial as they boys waited for buses to pick them up. Phillips approached the students while loudly banging a drum and chanting in a language the boys could not understand. Phillips stepped up to Sandmann, drumming and chanting within inches of the boy’s face. Sandmann, who was wearing a red Trump MAGA hat, stood and smiled as Phillips pounded and chanted.
Video clips cut to make Sandmann look like a bully went viral on the Internet on the day after, prompting a firestorm of hate and threats against Sandmann by celebrities, politicians, media, church and school officials.
Longer videos showed that Sandmann and his fellow students were subjected to vicious, racist harassment by Black Hebrew Israelites at the Lincoln Memorial before Phillips approached them but that the students did not respond to the black racists in kind. Phillips has told the media various reasons for approaching the boys, but the known facts are he never explained himself to them and that another Native American activist with Phillips swore at the students and told them to go back to Europe.
Wood’s statement as posted to PR Newswire:
Statement Of Attorneys L. Lin Wood And Todd McMurtry On Behalf Of Nick Sandmann And His Family
ATLANTA, Jan. 25, 2019 /PRNewswire/ — On January 18, in the span of a few hours, Nick Sandmann’s peaceful attendance with his Covington Catholic classmates at the March for Life in Washington, D.C. was turned into a personal nightmare when Nick became the focus of false and defamatory accusations published and broadcast across the nation and the world. A mob comprised of activists, church and school officials, members of the mainstream print and broadcast media, and individuals on social media, including elected public officials and celebrities, rushed to condemn and vilify this young man by burying him in an avalanche of false accusations, false portrayals, and cyberbullying that have threatened his reputation and his physical safety. Nick Sandmann is 16 years old. He is an eleventh-grade high school student. He is not the face of evil and he did absolutely nothing wrong or inappropriate in connection with the incident to deserve the heinous accusations made against him by uninformed or agenda-driven individuals and media entities.
Nick and his family have experienced one of the worst sides of our present society. As their lawyers, we intend to exercise our best efforts as advocates to show Nick and his family another side of our society – that we are a society that survives and flourishes from the fact that it is based on the rule of law. A system of justice that demands that truth prevail and the wrongdoers be held accountable for the harm they have inflicted on Nick and his family.
In the coming weeks, we will be carefully reviewing all of the false accusations and threats made against Nick. We fully expect that a multitude of civil lawsuits will be filed and aggressively pursued. We recognize that justice for Nick will not be achieved quickly, but we are dedicated to achieving it for this young man regardless of time or expense.
At this time, Nick, his family and their lawyers will not be engaging in media interviews. There is work to be done. If any member of the public has information, they believe is helpful to Nick, that information can be communicated to us by email to [email protected].
Nick and his family sincerely appreciate the fair-minded individuals who respect our system of justice and refused to rush to judgment before the truth was revealed. Our efforts are not about politics, race or religion. Our efforts are only about justice for Nick.
Wood came to prominence representing Richard Jewell, the security guard falsely accused by the media in the Atlanta Olympics bombing in 1996. From the Wood lawfirm about page:
L. Lin Wood, P.C., is a dynamic Atlanta-based litigation boutique with a national reputation and practice. With over 65 combined years of experience, the professionals at L. Lin Wood, P.C., have the expertise to handle any civil matter from inception through trial and appeal. The firm is dedicated to aggressive representation, combined with delivering excellent work product and living up to a full commitment to the causes of its clients. The firm strives to achieve the legal ideal of fighting to obtain justice for its clients who have been falsely accused, seek vindication for the American taxpayers, have suffered serious personal injuries or are embroiled in significant, complex business or estate litigation.
L. Lin Wood, P.C., was founded in 1983 in Atlanta by L. Lin Wood to focus on medical malpractice cases for victims. Mr. Wood soon established a reputation in the State of Georgia and beyond as a trial lawyer who could win large verdicts and settlements. Mr. Wood’s first defamation client was Richard Jewell, the security guard falsely accused in the 1996 Centennial Olympic Park bombing in Atlanta. Mr. Wood then went on to represent many other high profile individuals falsely accused by the media and in the Court of Public Opinion, including the parents of JonBenét Ramsey, John and the late Patsy Ramsey, and their son, Burke. Over the next two decades, Mr. Wood established his reputation as one of the nation’s most feared and respected defamation lawyers. In recent years, L. Lin Wood, P.C., has also established itself as a national leader in the litigation of False Claims Act cases, obtaining record-setting recoveries in cases of Medicare fraud.
L. Lin Wood, P.C., focuses its practice on First Amendment and defamation litigation; media management in high profile matters; False Claims Act cases, or “whistleblower” actions; fiduciary, trust and estate litigation; complex business litigation; and cases of catastrophic personal injury.
