David Sabatini Wins $6 Million Defamation Verdict as Both Sides Prepare Cross-Appeals
Updated
Updated · Fox News · Nov 6
David Sabatini Wins $6 Million Defamation Verdict as Both Sides Prepare Cross-Appeals
1 articles · Updated · Fox News · Nov 6
Summary
$6 million in damages went to former MIT biologist David Sabatini after a Massachusetts jury found Kristin Knouse defamed him with sexual misconduct claims and rejected her counterclaims.
Both camps are now heading to appellate court: Knouse is challenging the October verdict, while Sabatini plans a cross-appeal over an earlier ruling that dismissed the Whitehead Institute from the case.
Knouse's lawyer said the verdict could chill women from reporting misconduct, while Sabatini's lawyer argued the jury found Knouse's allegations false and said truthful complainants have nothing to fear.
The dispute stems from a 2018 relationship that Sabatini says was consensual and Knouse says was coerced; Whitehead's 2021 investigation found policy violations, and MIT, HHMI and Whitehead later cut ties with him.
The case has become a broader test of how universities handle Title IX-style investigations, after Sabatini's U.S. career collapsed and he rebuilt his research lab in Prague with backing from Bill Ackman.