Kim Kardashian is being sued for slander and libel after she posted an Instagram photo that inaccurately labeled a New York man as a Texas death row inmate.
In a statement to NBC News, an attorney for the reality star, who is studying to become a lawyer, said she made a "simple mistake" last February when she used a public photo of a man named Ivan Cantu "to promote Kim’s longstanding commitment to the cause of criminal justice reform."
In the Instagram post, Kardashian attempted to bring awareness to the case of Cantu, a death row inmate who was convicted of murdering his cousin and his cousin's fiancée. He was executed on Feb. 28, 2024. However, the image she used in her post was of a man who lives in Westchester, New York, and shares the same name as the inmate.
"The image was taken down almost immediately once the error was discovered," attorney Michael Rhodes said in a statement.
A civil complaint filed Thursday with the Los Angeles Superior Court says Kardashian's mixup exposed Cantu "to hatred, contempt, and/or ridicule."
"Kardashian published and disseminated false information about Cantu that was clearly untrue, erroneous, unfounded, shocking, scandalous, degrading, disgraceful, and/or shameful," it says.
Cantu, the complaint says, has suffered serious emotional damage, anxiety, post-traumatic stress, and "loss of reputation."
He is suing for libel, slander, emotional distress, invasion of privacy, representing him in false light, and negligence. He is seeking compensatory and punitive damages in an amount to be determined in court.
Kardashian's lawyer said they would "prefer to solve this without litigation, but of course will defend Kim as needed."
Greg Sobo, Cantu's attorney, said given Kardashian's celebrity status and influence she should "know the power of social media."
"For too long, we have seen social media cause devastating injuries to innocent victims," he said in a statement. "Social media is too often abused to bully the innocent, incite harm, and injure our communities. Just like those who cause physical harm should be held accountable, those who cause injuries to innocent victims through social media must also be held responsible."
He described his client as a "very private family man with two daughters" who was grieving a loss at the time Kardashian made her post.
"As a result of the Kardashian abuse, Mr. Cantu’s privacy was destroyed at a most critical and sensitive time, and he has suffered very real trauma that will last a lifetime," Sobo said, adding that they took the matter to court after several failed attempts to reach Kardashian's team.
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