The Gold Star family of a Marine who was killed during the Biden administration’s disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan is suing actor Alec Baldwin for $25 million over Baldwin’s accusation that the fallen Marine’s sister was an “insurrectionist.” The family alleges that Baldwin’s accusation led to online abuse.
BREAKING: The Death Ray is here – and the US military has it
The widow and sister of Marine Lance Cpl. Rylee J. McCollum filed suit against Baldwin on Friday for alleged defamation, invasion of privacy, negligence and intentional infliction of emotional distress, according to The New York Post.
The lawsuit comes after Baldwin posted on Instagram that he gave $5,000 to McCollum’s widow, Jiennah Crayton — a gift that he called a “tribute to a fallen soldier.” The actor had reached out to McCollum’s sister, Roice, and asked that the money be given to Crayton.
After Baldwin sent the check, Roice shared a photo on Instagram of herself at the Washington Monument on Jan. 6, 2021. The lawsuit states that Roice was in Washington, DC, during the storming of the Capitol, but she was protesting Joe Biden’s certification as president-elect and did not participate in any rioting or unlawful activity.
Roice was cleared of any wrongdoing after being interviewed by the FBI, but Baldwin still called her a “rioter” in a direct message.
“When I sent the $ for your late brother, out of real respect for his service to this country, I didn’t know you were a January 6th rioter,” Baldwin wrote.
Roice explained that she was simply protesting and that the FBI had already cleared her, but that wasn’t enough for Baldwin, who doubled down on the accusation, even going so far as to suggest Roice was partially responsible for “the death of a law enforcement officer.”
“I don’t think so. Your activities resulted in the unlawful destruction of government property, the death of a law enforcement officer, an assault on the certification of the presidential election. I reposted your photo. Good luck,” replied Baldwin, who had 2.4 million followers on Instagram at the time.
In the post, Baldwin called Roice an “insurrectionist.” The post was later deleted. Baldwin also called McCollum’s widow an “insurrectionist” even though she was not in Washington, D.C. on Jan. 6, 2021, the lawsuit states.
Roice said the post led to “hostile, aggressive, hateful messages” online, and the lawsuit claims that Baldwin did not attempt to stop the vitriol after posting the false accusations.
“Baldwin’s conduct was negligent and reckless as he should have known that making the allegations he did against Plaintiffs to his millions of followers would cause Plaintiffs harm,” the lawsuit reads.
Earlier this year, Baldwin claimed he was not “culpable” for fatally shooting Halyna Hutchins on the set of his latest film “Rust” last year, and that his film contract also protects him from any financial liability in the incident.
