East County native Reggie Bush wins just over $21K in attorneys’ fees, costs

FOX Sports analyst Reggie Bush talks with colleagues during a pre-game show Photo by Michael Allio Icon Sportswire Having previously proven an arbitrator s award of nearly million to a businessman who sued Reggie Bush for defamation after having settled a previous suit against the former Heisman Trophy winner and USC running back the same judge Monday ordered the businessman s parents to pay just over in attorneys fees to Bush Van Nuys Superior Court Judge Eric Harmon signed the order that will award the East County native in attorneys fees and in related costs Plaintiff Lloyd Lake along with his parents Roy and Barbara Gunner who are both in their s sued Bush for defamation in Van Nuys Superior Court in February Bush filed a motion to compel arbitration abiding by what he commented were the terms of the accord in the settlement of a previous suit requiring that an arbitrator and not a jury decide any future indicates In June Judge Valerie Salkin ruled in Bush s favor finding that Lake s second suit insists were plainly covered by the settlement s broad arbitration provision But the judge also ruled that Lake s parents part of the development should go before a jury However Bush filed an anti-SLAPP motion on April and Barbara Gunner dropped out as a plaintiff a week later in effect granting Bush s anti-SLAPP motion and declaring him the prevailing party and entitled to attorneys fees The defamation suit was the second of two suits between Bush and Lake Bush now resolved the first suit in with Lake who claimed he provided Bush with cash and other benefits while Bush played for the Trojans in and Lake s initial development alleged breach-of-contract The defamation suit alleged that Bush defamed Lake and the Gunners with remarks he made on YouTube in September and on Twitter three months later In the YouTube interview Bush allegedly explained among other things that Lake was trying to blackmail him and that Lake had a police record as long as a Cheesecake Factory menu Both statements are untrue according to the plaintiffs attorneys court papers On Twitter Bush allegedly referred to Lake as a convicted felon who was in prison for rape an allegation the plaintiffs attorneys state in their court papers was false and without any substance Lake and the Gunners suffered severe emotional distress and financial harm the current suit states But in his ruling the judge mentioned Barbara Gunner did not show she was likely to prevail on multiple of her causes of action including libel and intentional infliction of emotional distress Harmon noted that the courts frown on th hour droppings of cases by plaintiffs in order to avoid financial liability because it would undermine the goal of the anti-SLAPP statute which is intended to prevent people from using courts and expected threats of a lawsuit to intimidate those who are exercising their First Amendment rights In addition to winning the Heisman Trophy Bush also won the Doak Walker and Walter Camp awards He was born in Spring Valley and played for Helix High School in La Mesa City News Arrangement contributed to this article