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Jury awards wrestler Hulk Hogan $115-M in damages in sex tape lawsuit

Unknown 7:30 AM $115M , Awards , damages , Hogan , Hulk , Jury , lawsuit , Tape , wrestler

• Hulk Hogan was awarded $ 115 million in damages in sex tape lawsuit against Gawker • Hogan cried and hugged his lawyer after the verdict was announced • Gawker’s founder, Nick Denton, said they will appeal the verdict Former American wrestler Hulk Hogan has won his lawsuit against Gawker, a blog website known for gossip and media news, for violating his privacy by publishing a leaked sex tape of the wrestler in 2012. A jury in Florida, after deliberating for five hours, awarded Hulk Hogan $ 115 million in damages – $ 55 million for economic damages and $ 60 million for emotional distress. The <a href="http://news.sky.com/story/1662811/hulk-hogan-wins-115m-gawker-sex-tape-lawsuit">Sky News</a> said in an article published on March 19, 2016 that Hogan could be given additional payout when the jury reconvenes next week to consider punitive damages and other matters. Hogan’s lawyer, David Houston, said the former wrestler’s victory is “a victory for everyone who has had their privacy violated.” “We’re exceptionally happy with the verdict. We think it represents a statement as to the public’s disgust with the invasion of privacy disguised as journalism. The verdict says no more,” Houston said. The celebrity wrestler, whose real name is Terry Bollea, reportedly cried and hugged his lawyer after the jury announced the verdict. Hogan brought the case to court three years ago after Gawker published a one-minute, 41-second video showing the wrestler engaging in intercourse with Heather Cole, the wife of his then-bestfriend, radio shock jock Bubba the Love Sponge, whose real name is Todd Alan Clem. The celebrity former wrestler claimed he did not now that his encounter with Cole was recorded when it happened in 2007. He said he was humiliated by the publication of the sex tape that went viral. It was viewed 2.5 million times on the Gawker site. Hogan, through his lawyers, asked Gawker to take down the sex tape, but they refused. After he filed the lawsuit, a judge ordered Gawker to take down the video. Soon after, Gawker published an article with the title: <a href="http://gawker.com/a-judge-told-us-to-take-down-our-hulk-hogan-sex-tape-po-481328088">“A Judge Told Us to Take Down Our Hulk Hogan Sex Tape Post. We Won’t.”</a> Gawker’s founder, Nick Denton, said they will appeal the verdict. “Given key evidence and the most important witness were both improperly withheld from this jury, we all knew the appeals court will need to resolve the case. I want to thank our lawyers for their outstanding work and am confident that we would have prevailed at trial if we had been allowed to present the full case to the jury. That’s why we feel very positive about the appeal that we have already begun preparing, as we expect to win this case ultimately,” Denton said. <a href="http://kickerdaily.com/jury-awards-wrestler-hulk-hogan-115-m-in-damages-in-sex-tape-lawsuit/" rel="nofollow">Kicker Daily News</a>

• Hulk Hogan was awarded $ 115 million in damages in sex tape lawsuit against Gawker • Hogan cried and hugged his lawyer after the verdict ...