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A former physician at a Georgia immigration facility accused of performing forced hysterectomies on detainees has urged a federal judge to hold Amazon and podcast publisher Wondery accountable for a podcast episode that dubbed him "The Uterus Collector."

Defamation Claims and Motion to Dismiss

Dr. Mahendra Amin pushed back against the companies' motion to dismiss his defamation claims, arguing that Amazon and Wondery can't hide behind their claimed status as mere providers of "an interactive computer service."

Amin asserted their relationship to the "Seven Deadly Sinners" podcast that allegedly defamed him is "more akin to a record label or a publishing house." He stated, "They are no mail carrier. Instead, defendants are here as a consequence of their own decision to step beyond the scope of a passive service provider."

Amazon Must Face Podcast Defamation Suit : Contentious Podcast Episode

The episode in question, "The Uterus Collector," was issued in April 2023. Amin claims it falsely accused him of committing "evil sins ... to the bodies of women without their consent — and sometimes without their verbal understanding." These allegations, he said, were debunked by a 2022 U.S. Senate report.

Amin added that it's premature for Amazon and Wondery to claim that the content of the podcast episode was in the public interest and not motivated by "actual malice." Both of those are fact issues, he said, and neither is ripe for review at the motion-to-dismiss stage of litigation.

Legal Proceedings and Jurisdiction

Amin's latest filing comes about a month after both companies asked U.S. District Judge Lisa G. Wood to be dismissed from his suit. The suit also names podcasting network Morbid Network and "Seven Deadly Sinners" host Rachael O'Brien as defendants.

In the original complaint, Amin — recently dismissed from a proposed class action filed by women who alleged they were subjected to unnecessary gynecological procedures at Georgia's Irwin County Detention Center — said the defendants defamed him by hurling false allegations about his work at the facility.

Amazon Must Face Podcast Defamation Suit : Previous Allegations and Defamation Cases

The claims against Amin arose from a September 2020 letter sent by Project South to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the ICE Atlanta field office, and the Irwin County Detention Center. Amin alleged that Project South "worked to sensationalize" the contents of the letter, despite it being revealed "only one day after the letter was sent" that the claims weren't based on firsthand accounts and that he had "performed only two hysterectomies on ICDC patients."

A separate defamation case brought by Amin against NBCUniversal over its news networks' reporting of the allegations cleared the summary judgment stage last month and is set to head to trial.

Defenses and Jurisdiction Issues

In June, Amazon and Wondery said they are protected under Section 230 of the federal Communications Decency Act, which gives immunity from liability for distributing third-party content. They argued they are also protected when the content relates to public interest concerns unless it was published with actual malice.

O'Brien and Morbid, in a separate motion to dismiss, argued that the Georgia court where Amin's suit was filed has no jurisdiction over the Massachusetts-based company. Amin countered that Morbid cannot distance itself from its ties to Georgia by claiming Wondery is responsible for the podcast's distribution. He stated, "Since Georgia's long-arm statute encompasses actions taken 'through an agent,' this distinction is irrelevant."

Amazon Must Face Podcast Defamation Suit : Legal Representation

Amazon and Wondery are represented by Nicholas H. Howell and Jonathan M. Kaufman of King & Spalding LLP, and Dylan J. Price, Tenaya Rodewald, and Matthew G. Halgren of Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP. Morbid is represented by Amanda D. Proctor of Carlton Fields and Peter Biagetti, Daniel Goodrich, and Caroline Enright of Mintz Levin Cohn Ferris Glovsky & Popeo PC. O'Brien is represented by John Ray of John Ray & Associates, and Sarah M. MacKimm and Wayne D. Taylor of Mozley Finlayson & Loggins LLP. Amin is represented by Stacey Godfrey Evans, Ryan E. Harbin, and J. Amble Johnson of Stacey Evans Law, and Scott R. Grubman of Chilivis Grubman Dalbey & Warner LLP.