RAPID CITY, S.D. (AP) — A Pennington County judge has dismissed two defamation lawsuits filed by a Rapid City real estate investor who claimed his sister and the mother of his child both made false statements about him on social media.
A judge recently dismissed the lawsuits with prejudice, meaning the same claims cannot be refiled.
According to the original complaint, Josiah LaFrance alleged that both Natalie LaFrance-Slack and Karli Shama made false statements with malice to damage his personal and professional reputations on social media.
Josiah LaFrance was sentenced 180 days in jail and five years of probation for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon for a domestic assault charge in October.
