Kim Kardashian faces potential lawsuit for posting wrong photo of death row inmate

Kim Kardashian / FILE PHOTO (REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni)

LOS ANGELES – A man filed court papers against Kim Kardashian Thursday alleging the billionaire businesswoman and social media star defamed him by mistakenly posting his photo as being that of a man awaiting execution at the time in Texas in 2024.

Ivan Cantu’s still unofficial Los Angeles Superior Court lawsuit also alleges false light invasion of privacy, intentional infliction of emotional distress and negligence. He seeks unspecified compensatory and punitive damages.

A Kardashian representative could not be immediately reached for comment.

According to the proposed lawsuit, plaintiff Cantu is a New York resident and is not awaiting execution.

Kardashian’s mistaken posting of his photo on Instagram, where she has 350 million followers, and elsewhere in February 2024 has exposed him to “hatred, contempt and/or ridicule,” the court papers state.

Kardashian, 44, was trying to let the public know about the pending execution of a Texas inmate with the same name as the plaintiff and asked her followers to sign a petition requesting that the local district attorney “withdraw” the scheduled execution date.

However, the inmate Cantu was executed the same month as Kardashian’s postings.

Cantu’s lawyer, Greg Sobo, said the primary purpose of the lawsuit is to help the social media environment “become a safer place with more responsibility.”

“For too long, we have seen social media cause devastating injuries to innocent victims. Social media is too often abused to bully the innocent, incite harm and injure our communities,” Sobo said in a statement.

“Just like those who cause physical harm should be held accountable, so too should those who cause harm through social media. And if anyone should know the power of social media, it is Ms. Kim Kardashian.”

The lawsuit includes six counts, including libel, slander and invasion of privacy. The case is being filed in the Superior Court in Los Angeles, the largest trial court in the United States. (With CNS report)