Lynchburg, Virginia — Ben Crosswhite, the former fitness trainer of Liberty University's Jerry Falwell Jr., says his lawsuit over defamation by Reuters has been dismissed.
Crosswhite was suing the media mogul Thomson Reuters for $9.35 million due to defamation.
The defamation lawsuit states that articles published by Reuters in August and September 2020 convey that Crosswhite participated in a corrupt real estate deal with Falwell.
The lawsuit also states that articles referred to Falwell as a "sugar daddy" to Crosswhite.
The judge tossed the case over a timeliness issue, citing that the defamation claims were made past the statute of limitations in the state of Virginia.
Crosswhite has previously defended the deal made with Falwell and Liberty University for the property. The deal happened in 2016.
Crosswhite proposed to buy the tennis and gym facility located on Davis Cup Road from LU. The buyer-seller agreement shows Crosswhite purchased it for $1.2 million, the same price the building was assessed for in 2016, according to the City of Lynchburg.
The lawsuit states it was not a "sweet" deal, but "it was a normal business transaction on slightly unfair terms to Crosswhite".
