KXLY settles lawsuit over Fuhrman show

KXLY Broadcast Group settled a defamation lawsuit Monday that was brought by a man who was falsely accused of a crime during a call-in radio talk show.

KXLY attorney Laurel Siddoway declined to say how much the settlement may cost the station, or whether a public apology will be broadcast.

Efforts to reach other parties to the lawsuit, including author and former Los Angeles police detective Mark Fuhrman, were unsuccessful. Fuhrman and Mike Fitzsimmons were co-hosts of a radio show, “All About Crime,” when they encouraged a caller to make what turned out to be a false accusation on Aug. 14, 2001.

Fuhrman, who is perhaps best known for perjury that compromised the O.J. Simpson murder trial, is a KGA radio talk show host. Fuhrman pleaded no contest to a perjury charge after tapes proved he lied when he testified he hadn’t used a racial epithet in the previous 10 years.

Fuhrman and Fitzsimmons urged caller Michael Mullin to identify a man he believed had severely beaten him five weeks earlier at a Liberty Lake park. The man named was Zachary B. Field, a recent Central Valley High School graduate and honor student who had nothing to do with the crime.

Mullin was dismissed last August as a defendant in Field’s defamation suit. Fuhrman and Fitzsimmons remained defendants, and were represented by KXLY attorney Siddoway.

A certified transcript of Fuhrman’s and Fitzsimmons’ Aug. 14 broadcast shows they prodded Mullin into naming Field on the air.

Fuhrman asked whether Mullin’s suspect was an adult.

When Mullin said yes, Fuhrman responded, “Put it out.”

Fitzsimmons asked whether the suspect was older than 18, and Mullin said yes.

“Put it out,” Fuhrman reiterated.

“What’s his name?” Fitzsimmons asked.

After Mullin identified Field, the defendants went on to describe Field as a drunk, a felon, a robber and a liar, according to Field’s lawsuit. Two days later, knowing the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office had arrested two other men – who were later convicted – Fitzsimmons and Fuhrman continued to say on the air that Field might have been involved, Field said.

Sheriff Mark Sterk was criticized by numerous Liberty Lake residents for failure to arrest Field.

“Thank God we didn’t arrest him,” Sterk said. “We would’ve put the wrong person in jail.”