This story was sent to me by Mr. Rogers.
Infamous hoaxster Tawana Brawley — whose outrageous rape lie 25 years ago inflamed racial tensions nationwide — yesterday was finally slapped with a court order to settle a hefty defamation case against her.
“For at least 25 years, she has been living a major lie,” said former Dutchess County prosecutor Steven Pagones, who was falsely accused of raping Brawley in 1987 and finally tracked her down, thanks to The Post.
And this was the story that catapulted RWPP Al Sharpton into national prominence. It was a hoax, but Sharpton didn’t suffer any ill effects from it. He ran for president and got to fly first class and stay in luxury suites until his campaign cash ran out. He lost a defamation lawsuit put forth by Steve Pagones, one of the people Brawley accused of rape but other people, including Johnny Cochran, paid the settlement for him. And MSNBC gave him his own program which pretty much tells you about the ethics and journalistic standards of MSNBC and its parent NBC.
To me, this has always been about responsibility and accountability,’’ added the former ADA, who won the $190,000 defamation lawsuit against Brawley, 40, now a nurse in Virginia, more than a decade ago.
Which, of course, she hasn’t paid a dime of.
At 9 percent interest, that debt, which Brawley never attempted to pay off, now totals $431,492, according to the wage-garnishment papers filed in Virginia’s Surry County Court.
Brawley — whose unbelievable lies made the Rev. Al Sharpton a household name as he bombastically championed her cause — had changed her name and moved down South in the years since she was exposed.
Trying to escape accountability for her hoax.
Her fugitive-like antics long thwarted Pagones’ efforts to serve her with the court papers needed to get the financial damages due him.
But The Post finally found Brawley last month, effectively leading Pagones and his lawyer to her.
Good for the Post. Now, make her pay for her antics.
She was living under the assumed name of Tawana Vacenia Thompson Gutierrez in Hopewell, Va., and working as a licensed nurse at The Laurels of Bon Air, a nursing home in nearby Richmond.
According to Pagones’ lawyer, Garry Bolnick, the single mom’s wages could be docked 10 to 25 percent per paycheck as retribution for her lies.
I hope it’s 25%. Make her pay the maximum price for her lies.
Pagones said he might waive his entitled windfall — if Brawley finally ’fesses up.
Like that’s gonna happen. Take her for everything she’s got. Her hoax destroyed lives.
“There is a feeling of unfinished business to it,” he said of the case that ended his career and cost him his marriage. “I look at this as another opportunity for her to tell the truth.
“People criticize me for going after a hardworking single mother trying to support herself and child. My argument has been she has not been held accountable.
“If she is not going to tell the truth, then it is about the money. That is the only way to hold her accountable,” said Pagones, who is now principal owner of a private investigations firm.
But Pagones said he wonders if Sharpton will again try to rush to her aid and bail her out.
I doubt it. That would mean he would have to take time off from his race baiting over St. Trayvon of Skittles.
Neither of these two have been held accountable for what they did. Tawana is a poor single mom? Too bad. Actions should have consequences. Sharpton never paid a penalty for his race baiting and Brawley never paid a penalty for her lies. Maybe big Al can find somebody to pay Tawana’s bills like he found someone to pay his. Too bad Johnny Cochran is dead.
Check out her picture. That’s prolly what St. Trayvon of Skittles girlfriend Precious will look like 20 years from now only fatter. She’ll prolly be a single mom as well except in her case, she’ll be on welfare.
Update: Faithful reader Michael sent me this update.
Last week, 10 checks totaling $3,764.61 were delivered to ex-prosecutor Steven Pagones — the first payments Brawley has made since a court determined in 1998 that she defamed him with her vicious hoax.
And Pagones is a lot nicer than I am.
“Every week, she’ll think of me,” he told The Post. “And every week, she can think about how she has a way out — she can simply tell the truth.”
She’s too stupid for that. Instead she’ll prolly play the victim card and the race card. Look for the Martin family lawyer, Ben Crump, to get involved. This case is right up his alley.
She’s now forced to pay Pagones $627 each month, possibly for the rest of her life. Under Virginia law, she can appeal the wage garnishment every six months.
BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! A fine example of schadenfreude on my part. Prolly on Pagones part as well, but he’s willing to give her a way out. I wouldn’t. I’d take her for everything that I could.