Defendants seek lawyer fees in defamation suit

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“Political and retaliatory”

Two weeks after securing a dismissal of a high-profile defamation lawsuit, defendants Mary Moore and Margie Gallardo have filed a formal motion requesting $150,000 in attorney’s fees and legal sanctions against five Frio County officials.

The motion, filed on Friday, May 15, comes on the heels of a May 1 ruling by 281st District Judge Jennifer Dillingham, who dismissed the civil suit under the Texas Citizens Participation Act (TCPA).

TCPA is a statute designed to protect citizens from meritless lawsuits intended to suppress their right to report suspected wrongdoing or speak on matters of public concern.

Under the judgement, the five plaintiffs – Rochelle Camacho, Ramiro Trevino, Racheal Garza, Adriann Ramirez, and Rosa Galvan Rodriguez – were ruled jointly liable for the defendants’ legal expenses.

The newly filed motion explicitly outlines the financial penalties Moore and Gallardo are seeking, namely $37,000 in attorney fees and sanctions totaling $112,000, an amount which is three times the total of the legal fees.

Mark Anthony Sanchez, attorney for Moore and Gallardo, noted in the motion that “plaintiffs further sought extraordinary relief, including alleged actual damages of $50 million.”

“The political and retaliatory character of the litigation is evident from the face of the plaintiffs’ own pleading,” the motion read. “If citizens may be subjected to crushing litigation exposure, demands for tens of millions of dollars in damages, punitive damage, invasive discovery, and prolonged litigations merely because they reported perceived election misconduct or cooperated with law enforcement investigations, the inevitable result will be deterrence and silence.”

The legal battle stems from a February civil lawsuit filed by Domingo Garcia, attorney for the group. The suit alleged malicious prosecution and defamation following a contested 2022 Democratic

Party primary runoff election for county judge, claiming Moore and Gallardo knowingly manufactured false accusations of election fraud.

Judge Dillingham determined the plaintiffs failed to provide the “clear and specific evidence” required to sustain those claims.

Earlier this month, Garcia stated to media outlets that his clients plan to appeal the court’s dismissal.

According to Sanchez, should the judge grant the motion, the losing party must pay the fees. The appeal proceedure does not stop the fee collections.