Kai Spears wins $9.25 million defamation verdict against New York Times over false shooting report

A federal jury in Tuscaloosa found The New York Times liable for defamation and false light invasion of privacy and awarded Kai Spears, a former Alabama basketball walk-on, approximately $9.25 million in damages, according to reporting from Awful Announcing. The verdict concludes a civil trial in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama that began August 10 and concluded August 21, 2026. The lawsuit stems from a March 15, 2023 article reported by Billy Witz that identified Spears as the passenger in Brandon Miller's car at the time of a fatal shooting in Tuscaloosa in January 2023. The identification was incorrect. On June 2, 2023, three months after the article ran, The New York Times amended it. According to the amendment, the original version "misidentified the person who was in the car with Brandon Miller when the shooting occurred" and "erroneously identified that person as Kai Spears, a freshman basketball player." Further reporting determined that the person at the scene was Cooper Lee, a student manager for the team, not Spears. The Times' amendment noted that it had included denials from Alabama's athletic director and Spears's father in the original article, but "did not conclude that any other change to the article was warranted at that time." Charlie Stadtlander, a Times spokesman, said the organization was "disappointed the jury found The Times liable for an honest mistake" and stated that "the verdict and award of damages are contrary to law and not supported by the evidence." The Times is reviewing its legal options, according to reporting from Katie Robertson of The New York Times. The verdict carries particular weight in media accountability: according to Awful Announcing's reporting, The New York Times has not lost a defamation lawsuit brought in the United States over one of its articles in more than 50 years. Spears joined the Crimson Tide as a walk-on guard in 2022 and did not play in the 2022-23 season but earned a scholarship and played during 2023-24. , where he is listed as a senior guard on the official roster. Spears told Tuscaloosa Patch: "I first want to thank God for the outcome. I was honored to have an amazing legal team and I'm so thankful to Stephen New, Matt Glover and Ginger Buck for fighting the case on my behalf. It's been a long journey to get to this point, and I'm grateful to the jury for awarding this case in my favor. My hope is that we all lead with love and always seek the one constant truth in this life." His father, Christian Spears, told the outlet: "Our goal was a simple retraction from The New York Times. Instead, the Times defended its inaccurate article and continued to distort facts rather than acknowledge the harm they caused, acting as if its power made it untouchable. The Alabama jury made it clear to The New York Times that they were wrong to do what they did."