Bay Pines VA Doctor wins lawsuit against Times

Times Publishing hit with $10 million judgment in libel suit
By Jamal Thalji, Times Staff Writer
In Print: Saturday, August 29, 2009



ST. PETERSBURG — The former chief of medicine at Bay Pines VA Medical Center prevailed Friday in a libel lawsuit against Times Publishing Co.

The jury found against the parent company of the St. Petersburg Times and awarded Dr. Harold L. Kennedy more than $10 million in damages.

"We are very disappointed by the verdict," said Times Executive Editor and Vice President Neil Brown. "We believe our reporting and editing of these stories met the highest journalistic and ethical standards.

"The Times will appeal the jury's decision.''

The lawsuit was filed over three articles that appeared in the Times in December 2003 about Kennedy's reassignment from chief of medicine to his subspecialty of cardiology. Kennedy filed suit in Pinellas-Pasco Circuit Court in 2005.
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Times Publishing hit with 10 million judgment in libel suit