Roy Moore sues sexual abuse accuser Leigh Corfman for defamation

Attorneys for former Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore filed claims for defamation and slander against a woman who accused him of sexual abuse.

Moore’s demand for a jury trial, filed late Monday, is in response to a suit raised in January by Leigh Corfman, who claims the judge sexually abused her when she was 14. Her filing takes aim at both Moore and his campaign for defaming her after she came forward with the misconduct accusations.

Corfman, in an article published by The Washington Post in November, alleged that Moore in 1979 took her to his home in Etowah County where he undressed her and touched her inappropriately.

She additionally claimed Moore, a 32-year-old district attorney at the time, approached her in his underwear and “guided” her hand toward his penis.

Her accusations came during Moore’s campaign for the U.S. Senate seat that was left vacant by Attorney General Jeff Sessions. Democrat Doug Jones narrowly defeated the judge, who was widely expected to win before Corfman’s accusations were made public.

» Alabama Sen. Doug Jones calls arming teachers 'the dumbest idea I've ever heard'

“The statements made by Leigh Corfman to The Washington Post were fabricated and malicious and made with the sole intent of defaming Mr. Moore so as to damage his reputation in the community, state, and nation and prevented his election to the U.S. Senate,” according to court documents.

In the counterclaim, Moore additionally alleges that “no evidence other than the self-serving testimony of Leigh Corfman exists to support her contention that she was sexually abused or pursued romantically by Mr. Moore when she was 14 years of age.”

Moore has repeatedly denied the sexual abuse allegations that surfaced during the Senate race late last year.

“This is and has been a political attempt to smear the good name and reputation of Judge Roy Moore and we will not let this injustice continue,” one of his attorneys, Melissa Isaak said.

The countersuit comes after Montgomery Circuit Judge Ronan Shaul denied a motion by Moore’s legal team to dismiss Corfman’s defamation lawsuit. Shaul also declined to move the legal proceedings from Montgomery to Etowah County, where both Moore and Corfman are residents.

“We also continue to argue that this case should be tried in Etowah County, and wonder why Leigh Corfman has chosen to file this case in Montgomery and not Etowah, where both she and Judge Moore reside and where her character and reputation are well-known,” Isaak added.

Both Moore and Corfman are slated to appear in court Thursday for the first hearing on the mater.

About the Author