Filed under 9-11 Cover-up::: Durango Suit

Durango woman sues Herald for 9/11 cover up

Plaintiff wants $7,500 compensation for research expenses

May 19, 2006
Herald Staff Report

A Durango woman issued a court summons to The Durango Herald, its publisher and its chairman on Thursday, demanding the newspaper compensate her for her attempt to uncover what she believes is a conspiracy to suppress the truth about the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

Judith Pfeif, representing a group called Caring for Our Community, obtained a summons requiring the Herald to appear in La Plata County small-claims court on June 1.

Pfeif wants $7,500 compensation - the maximum allowed in small-claims court - for expenses incurred researching the attacks and publicizing her view of what happened.

Pfeif wrote in her petition, "The defendants are guilty of complicity in covering up the truth about the 9/11 tragedy, thus making every one of them accomplices in the greatest crime of this century."

Pfeif could not be reached for comment because she did not have a listed phone number.

Publisher Richard Ballantine responded to the summons Thursday, saying "I don't think the Herald is withholding anything that pertains to a conspiracy.

"The newsroom has the right to select the news and photos it thinks is of interest to its readers," Ballantine said, adding that he will represent the newspaper in the court hearing.


"The whole idea that we're being sued for not running a story is very unusual in the newspaper industry," he said.

The publisher said that those interested in learning about the attacks "can find plenty about that on Web sites and in bookstores."

Several thorough investigations have been made of the attacks, most notably by The National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States, commonly referred to as the 9/11 commission. Its final report became a best-selling book.

In March, the Durango 9/11 group met with the Herald's editorial board, on which Ballantine sits. It presented a petition with the signatures of 193 people, then demonstrated in front of the Herald's office on Main Avenue.

Named as defendants in the summons were Richard Ballantine, Editor and Chairman Morley Ballantine and the newspaper itself.