JEFFERSON CITY — John Brunner has settled a defamation lawsuit with an investor who donated $1 million to Gov. Eric Greitens, Brunner's rival in the 2016 Republican gubernatorial primary.
Court documents filed Wednesday show that venture capitalist Michael Goguen voluntarily dismissed his lawsuit against Brunner with prejudice, meaning that it cannot be filed again. This type of language is indicative that some sort of out-of-court agreement was reached.
The settlement was confirmed Thursday night by Sallie Hofmeister, a spokeswoman for Sitrick & Company, the firm acting as a public relations adviser to Goguen. The settlement was about clearing Goguen's name, Hofmeister said, and no money changed hands.
Goguen donated $1 million to Greitens with two $500,000 checks in late 2015. In spring 2016, Goguen was sued by a former girlfriend who claimed he had subjected her to repeated abuse over the course of their relationship. Goguen denies the allegations.
Brunner and Greitens skirmished near the end of a July primary debate, with Brunner eventually saying he would not be lectured by "a guy who took $1 million from an owner of a teenage sex slave."
It didn't take long for Goguen to sue Brunner on the grounds that the Missouri businessman's remarks were defamatory.
Hofmeister also provided the News-Leader with a Jan. 12 letter from Brunner to Goguen.
In the letter, Brunner acknowledged his remark and writes that he "subsequently received information indicating that my statement was inaccurate, and retracted the statement" on Aug. 4 through a press release and a tweet. Brunner appears to have since deactivated his Twitter account.
Without going into specifics, Brunner wrote that Goguen provided him further information supporting the former's decision to retract his statement.
"Unfortunately, in the heat of a political campaign and a contentious debate, candidates sometimes make statements that prove to be erroneous," Brunner wrote. "There can be a tendency to repeat information that has been reported in the media with the assumption that the media has performed all of the necessary fact checking. That is what happened here."
The letter does not specify what news story Brunner saw or read that led him to believe Goguen owned a teenage sex slave.
"In my experience, few candidates for political office correct erroneous statements they may have made," Brunner continued. "I believe I stand as an exception to that.
"I regret the making of the statement and never had any intention of harming you or your reputation in any way. I hope this letter provides some reassurance of that. You may feel free to use this letter in any manner you deem appropriate."
Michael Hamlin, Brunner's attorney, declined to comment.
As the lawsuit played out, Brunner tried to depose Greitens and his campaign treasurer, Jeff Stuerman. Brunner also subpoenaed Greitens for communications about Goguen's lawsuits and other documents. Greitens' attorney argued that Brunner was seeking confidential campaign material and that all the material he wanted was available from Goguen.
Attorneys for Greitens and Brunner eventually agreed that Greitens would not be deposed and Stuerman would sit for questioning, though not until after the election. Documents also were supposed to be produced by Greitens' campaign.
Hamlin has not responded to multiple requests for a transcript of Stuerman's deposition.
