Attorneys for 36th Ward Alderman John Rice, R. Tamara de Silva and Jonathan Lubin today filed for an injunction and Temporary Restraining Order (TRO), along with a defamation suit against the Ald. Rice's opponent, Nicholas Sposato, and his campaign committee, Friends of Nicholas Sposato. The TRO and lawsuit were impelled by sensationally false accusations made by Sposato, in a press advisory and press conference held on March 11, 2011 in front of City Hall, along with a campaign of robocalls, stating that Alderman Rice is engaged in criminal activity. Attorneys for Alderman Rice moved decisively to ensure Sposato not only issue a retraction but immediately cease and desist publishing defamatory and manufactured falsehoods about the Alderman that lead attorney R. Tamara de Silva said amounted to a, "series of self-serving and manufactured facts, displaying breathtaking intellectual dishonesty."
"Alderman Rice has dedicated his life and his work to building the reputation and character of which his family, his children, his friends, and the people of the 36th Ward can be proud," said attorney Jonathan Lubin, "this is a desperate act to try and paint him in a false light and gave rise to the false implication that he is engaged in criminal conduct, in direct contravention to the truth and doing irrevocable harm in the space of minutes to a reputation, candidacy and profession that takes a lifetime to build. Aldermanic elections should invite candid discussions of the issues, not provide a forum for the publication of defamation."
"Contrary to the Defendants' desire to make sensationalized campaign sound-bites by spurious and false publications, Alderman Rice's career in government and in the private sector, has been unsullied by criminal charges involving political matters or any other matters, and he will not stand idly by while Mr. Sposato aggressively evades the truth in a campaign to say whatever it takes to try and get elected. You cannot literally make anything up just to win an election. Mr. Sposato's attempt to maliciously and wrongfully portray Ald. Rice will not prevail." Attorney de Silva