Ray Epps, a January 6 protester accused by prominent Republicans and conservative media of being a government plant who helped escalate the insurrection, has sued Fox News for defamation.
The 53-page lawsuit accuses Fox News and specifically its former nighttime host, Tucker Carlson, of sowing doubt in the results of the 2020 presidential election and, in turn, making Epps the "poorly cast villain" while the cable network was in the throes of another defamation lawsuit involving Dominion Voting Systems.
Epps has never faced criminal charges in the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
His lawsuit seeks an unspecified amount in damages and was filed Wednesday in Superior Court in Delaware, the same legal setting where Fox settled and agreed to pay Dominion $787.5 million in response to claims that the network spewed false rhetoric and information about the 2020 election being compromised.
Brian Farnan, lead Delaware counsel for Dominion in that suit, is one of the attorneys representing Epps as part of this new litigation.
"In the aftermath of the events of January 6, Fox News searched for a scapegoat to blame other than Donald Trump or the Republican Party," the lawsuit reads. "Eventually, they turned on one of their own, telling a fantastical story in which Ray Epps—who was a Trump supporter that participated in the protests on January 6—was an undercover FBI agent and responsible for the mob that violently broke into the Capitol and interfered with the peaceful transition of power for the first time in this country's history."
In a statement to Newsweek, Michael Teter, Ray Epps' lead counsel, called the suit "another moment of accountability for Fox News." He said that conspiracies flaunted by the network and Carlson exposed his client and his wife, Robyn, to harassment, intimidation and abuse.
Some voicemails allegedly warned Epps "to sleep with one eye open," while the couple received other death threats and found bullet casings on their property.
"From publicly available information, it is clear that Fox News was well aware of the falsity of the stories about Ray that it promoted, but it advanced its lies anyway for the callous and cynical purpose of creating a scapegoat to deflect responsibility from Fox News's own complicity in the events of January 6," Teter said. "Evidence gained through discovery will likely prove even more damning than what is currently known."
Carlson accused of targeting his loyal viewer
Fox "broadcast, amplified, and endorsed false claims about a rigged election," according to the lawsuit. Epps and his wife were loyal viewers of the network and both voted for Trump in 2016 and 2020—they also used to watch Carlson religiously.
"From the stories they heard on Fox and from their own experiences, Ray and Robyn believed that the 2020 election had been stolen from Donald Trump," says the suit. "Ray and Robyn were persuaded by the lies broadcast by Fox asserting that the election had been stolen to exercise their perceived responsibilities as patriotic citizens to gather in the nation's Capitol on January 6, 2021, to 'stop the steal.'"
Epps flew from his Arizona home to Washington, D.C., in preparation of the "stop the steal" gathering outside the Capitol on January 6, meeting up with his son and his friend. The ex-Marine was donned in a red Trump hat.
Carlson, perhaps ironically, then focused large chunks of his airtime vilifying Epps—who was caught on video at the Capitol riot, even though the lawsuit claims he attempted to be a pacifist and prevent any breaches from occurring. Testimony from other January 6 protesters, including Ryan Samsel, backed up Epps' claims when questioned by the FBI in the day's aftermath.
Due to the false information being disseminated on Fox News by Carlson and others about the 2020 election, the lawsuit claims, Epps was made a focal point of interest and continually targeted by Carlson in over two dozen segments.
Some of those pieces included Carlson himself, or guests on his show, referring to Ebbs as a government "plant" or provocateur.
"Fox—and specifically Mr. Carlson—decided that Epps was the villain they needed to distract from the Dominion lawsuit and their culpability for stoking the fire that led to the events of January 6th," the lawsuit states.
Last year, after Epps spoke of his actions on January 6 under oath, the House Select Committee dismissed him as any kind of government plant working on behalf of the FBI.
In an interview with CBS News' 60 Minutes in April, Epps told correspondent Bill Whitaker that Carlson is "obsessed" with him and is "going to any means possible to destroy my life." Carlson left his show, Tucker Carlson Tonight, that same month.
Newsweek has reached out via email to Fox News for comment.
Epps, wife 'endured significant emotional and psychological harm'
Epps and his wife ran a profitable wedding venue business prior to selling their home and moving to Utah in May 2022 because of death threats, which came as a result of accusations made by Carlson and other Republicans, including Senator Ted Cruz and Representatives Matt Gaetz, Marjorie Taylor Greene and Thomas Massie.
"The consequences to Ray and Robyn have been enormous," Teter said. "They lost their successful wedding venue business, they had to sell their home that they spent years building, and they have endured significant emotional and psychological harm from the attacks.
"We are confident that Ray will prevail in his defamation and false light claims against Fox News and that a jury will award significant damages, including punitive, to Ray for the lies Fox News spread about him."
