CNN must deliver docs going back to 2021 to US Navy vet who sued over claims network smeared his company after he aided those fleeing Afghanistan after botched withdrawal

A Florida judge has ruled that CNN must hand over financial records to attorneys for US Navy veteran Zachary Young, who filed a defamation lawsuit against the network on allegations that it smeared his company during a segment on the Biden administration's 2021 botched withdrawal for Afghanistan, as reported by Fox News.

Young, the owner of security consulting company Nemex Enterprises Inc., filed a lawsuit against CNN in 2021 after the network implied it illegally profited when it helped people evacuate from Afghanistan after the United States botched its pullout. According to the suit, Young claims that CNN "destroyed his reputation and business by branding him an illegal profiteer who exploited desperate Afghans."



Attorneys for Young filed to seek broad access to the network's financial records to determine the company's net worth. CNN objected to the motion. Judge William Henry of the 14th Judicial Circuit Court of Florida ruled to both "sustain" and "overrule" the motion. He ordered CNN to hand over the requested documents, but within a limited time period.

Judge Henry ordered that the plaintiff's "financial discovery requests shall be limited to the time period from Sept. 2021 to the present, except as to documents that can only be produced on a yearly basis, in which case the applicable time period will be from Jan. 1, 2021, to the present," according to court documents obtained by Fox News.

The judge ruled that Young's legal team "may serve a subpoena on Warner Bros. Discovery," the network's parent company, to obtain the financial records.

Young alleged in the complaint that during a Nov. 11, 2021, segment on CNN's "The Lead with Jake Tapper," the host and another correspondent defamed his company and character when they suggested that his company was "exploiting" Afghans and illegally profiting from its rescue evacuation operations. The plaintiff said in the suit that CNN painted him as a bad actor who preyed upon vulnerable people by using terms such as "black market," "exploit," and "exorbitant" to describe his efforts.

During the segment, CNN host Jake Tapper said that Afghans who were attempting to exit the country encountered "a black market full of promises, demands of exorbitant fees, and no guarantee of safety or success."

Tapper then threw it to CNN correspondent Alex Marquardt, who stated that "desperate Afghans are being exploited" and need to pay "exorbitant, often impossible amounts" to evacuate from the country. Marquardt then singled out Young, airing a picture of himself on the screen and announcing that his company was seeking $75,000 to transport a vehicle of passenger to Pakistan for $14,500.

Young said in the complaint that he had a message exchange with Marquardt "just hours before publication where he advised there were factual inaccuracies in the reporting" but "CNN published anyway."

A civil trial has been scheduled for Jan. 6, 2025, in the Circuit Court of Bay County, Florida, presided over by Judge Henry.