LAWSUIT: Historian fights back after Pennsylvania state senator sues him for criticizing book

• Years after Oklahoma historian James Gregory raised academic misconduct concerns about Pennsylvania state Sen. Doug Mastriano’s research, Mastriano sued him for defamation and federal claims ranging from RICO to antitrust violations.
• FIRE is seeking to have Mastriano’s lawsuit thrown out because it threatens academic freedom and James’ First Amendment right to criticize public officials.
• Mastriano’s lawsuit is a textbook “SLAPP” case, in which powerful individuals sue their critics into silence through long, costly litigation.

PHILADELPHIA, Sept. 19, 2024 —After Pennsylvania state Sen. Doug Mastriano sued Oklahoma historian James P. Gregory Jr. for criticizing his academic research, the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression is stepping in to defend James’ First Amendment right to question powerful public officials.

James is a museum director and Ph.D. candidate who did nothing more than raise legitimate concerns about the quality of Mastriano’s academic scholarship, engaging in expression squarely protected by the First Amendment.

“Historians arrive at the truth by debating ideas, inviting skepticism, and challenging assumptions and sources,” said James. “By trying to silence that debate, Mastriano is literally on the wrong side of history — and history will prevail.”

To vindicate James’ rights, FIRE is asking the court to dismiss the case. Not only are Mastriano’s federal claims baseless, but his defamation claim is subject to an Oklahoma law that allows courts to swiftly dismiss lawsuits targeting protected speech. 

“The First Amendment means all Americans have the right to criticize public officials, no matter how angry that criticism makes them,” said FIRE senior attorney Greg Greubel. “Politicians should be concerned about legislating for the people, not suing critics when their feelings get hurt.”

Mastriano is a former military officer who has served in the Pennsylvania State Senate since 2019. Before his political career began, he wrote a 2014 biography of Sergeant Alvin York, a famed World War I hero, based on his Ph.D. dissertation at the University of New Brunswick in Canada.

While James was a graduate student in 2018, he came across Mastriano’s book and initially thought highly of it. But when he tried to verify some of its claims, he realized that many citations were inaccurate — to the point that he was concerned some were potentially fabricated. 

In 2022, James reported more than 200 issues with Mastriano’s research on Sgt. York to the University of New Brunswick. James also wrote a book about Sgt. York, which counters many of Mastriano’s claims. The academic dispute became major headline news when Mastriano became the Republican nominee for Pennsylvania governor, and reporters began scrutinizing his past.

“I knew nothing about Mastriano’s political ambitions, and I tend to vote Republican myself,” said Gregory, now the director of the William A. Brookshire Military Museum at Louisiana State University. “But I’m also a historian, and we have a duty to seek out the truth and correct the record.”

COURTESY PHOTOS OF JAMES FOR MEDIA

In May, Mastriano filed a lawsuit in Oklahoma against James, the University of New Brunswick, and dozens of its faculty members. Mastriano accused James of defamation and — bafflingly — of violating the RICO Act and the Sherman Antitrust Act. The RICO Act was created to curb organized crime, and antitrust laws target monopolies, but James broke no laws, and no one has a monopoly on the truth. 

“Mastriano’s lawsuit is a threat to academic freedom,” said FIRE attorney Sara Berinhout. “Historians settle debates in the marketplace of ideas, not the courtroom. And they certainly don’t argue that their critics are racketeers like Al Capone or John Gotti. ”

STAND UP FOR JAMES’ ACADEMIC FREEDOM

Mastriano’s lawsuit is a textbook example of a Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation, also known as a “SLAPP.” SLAPP suits are intended to chill speech by forcing the speaker to defend themself against costly and time-consuming litigation.

To prevent this sort of abuse of the court system, Oklahoma passed the Oklahoma Citizens Participation Act in 2014, which allows a defendant to file a motion to quickly dismiss a lawsuit targeting First Amendment-protected speech and makes the plaintiff responsible for paying the defendant’s legal fees. More than 30 states have similar anti-SLAPP measures, but residents of the other states are perpetually at risk of facing “censorship by lawsuit” for speaking their minds.

“James’ plight is a perfect example of why robust anti-SLAPP protections are vital to expressive freedom,” said Greubel. “Otherwise, the First Amendment is nothing more than a luxury for those who can afford to fight off an expensive lawsuit. It doesn’t matter if politicians use laws or lawsuits: Censorship is censorship, and FIRE is here to fight it in all its forms.”

The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to defending and sustaining the individual rights of all Americans to free speech and free thought — the most essential qualities of liberty. FIRE educates Americans about the importance of these inalienable rights, promotes a culture of respect for these rights, and provides the means to preserve them.

CONTACT:

Alex Griswold, Communications Campaign Manager, FIRE: 215-717-3473; media@thefire.org