Former prosecutor settles lawsuit against Netflix over Central Park Five series
Former Manhattan prosecutor Linda Fairstein and Netflix have announced they’ve settled the defamation lawsuit she filed four years ago over her portrayal in the streaming service’s miniseries about the five Black and Latino teenagers known as the now-e...
NEW YORK — Former Manhattan prosecutor Linda Fairstein and Netflix announced Tuesday they've settled the defamation lawsuit she filed four years ago over her portrayal in the streaming service's miniseries about the five Black and Latino teenagers known as the now-exonerated Central Park Five.
Fairstein had argued that the 2019 four-part series “When They See Us” defamed her by portraying her as a “racist, unethical villain" and attributed actions, responsibilities and viewpoints that were not hers.
The case was expected to go to trial later this month. Fairstein said in a statement that “the decision to conclude this fight was not an easy one," expressing confidence she would have presented a “compelling case to the jury.” While Fairstein will not receive any money as part of the settlement, Netflix has agreed to donate $1 million to the Innocence Project, a nonprofit that works to exonerate people who've been wrongly convicted.
Viewers of the series will also now see a disclaimer that states, «While the motion picture is inspired by actual events and persons, certain characters, incidents, locations, dialogue, and names are fictionalized for the purposes of dramatization.”
“This is what this case was all about — not about ‘winning’ or about any financial restitution, but about my reputation and that of my colleagues,” she said in a statement. “It was about setting the historical record straight that the villainous caricature invented by the defendants and portrayed
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