SALINE COUNTY, Ark. – A Saline County judge has issued an order citing “name-calling” in a defamation suit regarding the race for Saline County sheriff.
The suit was first filed on March 10 by candidate Richard Friend, alleging defamation by a group intending to impact his candidacy. He is now in the runoff race for sheriff, having gathered 32.85% of the vote against candidate Dustin Robertson’s 37.3%.
Saline County sheriff’s race candidate files suit alleging defamation
Both are running for a seat currently held by Sheriff Rodney Wright, who will not be returning to that position and is running for the Arkansas Senate.
The suit is against Rick Cross, Kevin Cooper and “John Does 1-5,” alleging they knowingly lied in a series of Facebook posts that defamed Friend…