JAMES P. PewitT, LLC August 9, 2017 BY ELECTRONIC AND U.S. MAIL Mr. James Pratt James Pratt, LLC 2 North 20" Street, Suite 950 Birmingham, Alabama 35203 Re: Dr. Stewart Hill Tankersley Dear Mr. Pratt: It is my honor and privilege to represent Dr. Stewart Hill Tankersley in connection with the claims, allegations, and demands you make in your letter dated August 4, 2017. Dr. Tankersley did not have a chance to open the email from you and. read your letter on August 4, 2017, because he was on National Guard duty at Fort McClellan. He has now read your letter and has authorized me to provide this response. I understand that you sent your letter on behalf of your client, Jerry Fielding, who currently serves as Chairman of the Alabama Ethics Commission. Based on your having identified Mr. Fielding as your client, I assume that the threats and demands set out in your letter are being made solely on behalf of Mr. Fielding, and will respond accordingly, despite your occasional reference to other commissioners in your letter. _ You refer to “two different interviews” where Dr. Tankersley allegedly accused Mr. Fielding of “being corrupt.” Unfortunately, you did not provide the date when those interviews were published, the name of the journalists who published them, the name of the publication where the interviews appeared, a copy of the interviews, or a specific quotation from either interview where those precise words were used. Without that information, we cannot in all fairness be expected to respond fully to you. We are aware of one article published by Mr. John Archibald on al.com on August 4, 2017, in which the following words appeared: “So,” L asked, “They've been corrupted by the machine that corrupts the politicians?” “No!” he said. “They haven't been corrupted by it They're a part of it.” Arronnevrewir@emait.comMr. James Pratt August 9, 2017 Page 2 The response set out above is attributed to Dr. Tankersley. In another sentence appearing in that same article, Dr. Tankersley is quoted as saying, “We have a corrupt climate in the politics of our state and something needs to be done about it.” He is also quoted as saying, “I don’t think they (other commissioners) believe that’s the case.” Elsewhere in the article, Mr. Archibald describes at least some of the factual bases for Dr. Tankersley’s opinions. I do not see a statement attributed to Dr. Tankersley where he specifically accuses Mr. Fielding of “being corrupt.” Leaving that aside, as an accomplished lawyer, I am sure you can recognize the difference between statements of fact, which can serve as the basis for a libel claim, and statements of opinion, which generally cannot. It appears to me, and I believe it would also appear to any reasonable person, that Dr. Tankersley did not accuse Mr. Fielding of the actual commission of a crime. Dr. Tankersley was offering public comment and opinion on important issues and controversies facing our State and the Alabama Ethics Commission, which is speech that lies at the heart of First Amendment protection. Even if Dr. Tankersley (who is not a lawyer) had accused Mr. Fielding of “being corrupt,” which is not the language Dr. Tankersley used, he would have been only speculating as to the internal motivation, bias, and subjective beliefs of a public official Courts have typically found that sort of speech, particularly in the context of a public debate or controversy, to be an insufficient basis for a claim of libel. See, e.g., Lauderback v. Am. Broad. Cos., Inc., 741 F.2d 193, 195 (8" Cir. 1984) (statement suggesting that an insurance agent was “rotten,” “unethical,” “sometimes illegal,” “crook,” and “liar” was protected opinion); Lizotte v. Welker, 45 Conn. Supp. 217, 226- 28 (Conn. Super. Ct. 1996) (statements regarding plaintiff's “contributions to slush funds,” “part of the fix,” “secret, illegal, corrupt deals,” “payoffs,” “blatant coverup attempt” and “maneuvers with political and corrupt implications” were rhetorical hyperbole, and no reader could believe the plaintiff was being charged with the commission of a criminal offense); Dubinsky v, United Airlines Master Exec. Council, 303 ILL. App. 34 317, 330 (IIL. App. Ct. 1999) (statement that plaintiff was a “crook” was protected opinion); Finkelstein v. Wachtel, 2003 WL. 1918309, *7 (S.D. N.Y.2003) (statements that plaintiff was a “crook” and that this was going to be a “very dirty business” were protected opinion, because the terms are “colloquial, loose, figurative terms that do not necessarily convey to the listener that plaintiff had, in fact, engaged in criminal behavior”); Polish Am. Immigration Relief Comm., Inc., v. Relax, 189 A.D.2d 370, 373 (N.Y. App. Div. 1* Dept. 1993) (statements in magazine describing Polish immigrant aid corporation as “madhouse” and employees as “thieves” and “false do- gooders” were protected opinion because statements were rhetorical hyperbole). 1 invite you to review those opinions and others along the same lines. Simply put, in this country, we generally have the right to criticize our public officials, even in harsh terms, without fear of being sued or silenced through punitive litigation.Mr. James Pratt August 9, 2017 Page 3 Dr. Tankersley is a man of conviction. He takes his role on the Commission, and the welfare of our State, very seriously. He believes what he says, and he says what he believes. Dr. Tankersley must therefore respectfully decline your demands that he apologize and retract the opinions attributed to him and published in Mr. Archibald’s article. If Mr. Fielding were to take the unfortunate (and, in my opinion, misguided) step of initiating a lawsuit over this, Dr. Tankersley would defend himself vigorously, and he would look forward to an opportunity to discuss and explore the factual bases for his opinions in yet another public forum. Finally, Dr. Tankersley is also a man of faith. Regardless of his opinions about the Commission or our state government, he has never purposefully sought to harm or offend any particular individual, including Mr. Fielding. To the extent Mr. Fielding has strong feelings about this matter, Dr. Tankersley would be happy to discuss those directly with him at an appropriate time or place. Please feel free to contact me if you have any further questions or need any additional information, wees imes P. Pewitt