NBC Settles After Judge Finds 39 False Statements In ICE Doctor Defamation Case

NBCUniversal has settled a $30 million defamation lawsuit filed by a Georgia doctor after the network falsely accused him of conducting mass hysterectomies on detained illegal immigrants. The settlement comes after a judge ruled that NBC made nearly 40 false claims and found enough evidence to suggest the network acted with “actual malice.”

The controversy began in 2020 when NBC reporters Julia Ainsley, Jacob Soboroff and Danielle Silva published an article amplifying claims made by former nurse and whistleblower Dawn Wooten. The report alleged that Dr. Mahendra Amin performed numerous unauthorized hysterectomies on female detainees at an ICE facility. MSNBC hosts Rachel Maddow, Nicolle Wallace and Chris Hayes further spread the allegations, accusing Amin of “mass hysterectomies” without patient consent.

A Senate subcommittee investigation later exposed the claims as false. According to the report, Amin had performed only two hysterectomies at the facility between 2017 and 2019, both of which were deemed medically necessary and approved by ICE. Additionally, both patients had signed informed consent forms, directly contradicting the allegations made by NBC.

The lawsuit revealed that NBCUniversal executives had internal doubts about the story before its publication. Chris Scholl, senior deputy head of Standards, initially resisted approving the report, noting in an email that Wooten “provides no evidence to back up her claims.” Another NBC reporter admitted that ICE data “would negate” the accusations.

However, the network published the story anyway, leading to widespread media coverage and damage to Amin’s reputation.

Judge Lisa Godbet Wood, presiding over the case, ruled that NBCUniversal made 39 “verifiably false” statements about Amin. She also found that the network’s decision to run the story despite internal skepticism could be seen as “actual malice,” which is the legal threshold for defamation.

While the exact details of the settlement remain undisclosed, the case was scheduled for trial in April before NBCUniversal opted to settle. The lawsuit highlights growing concerns over reckless reporting and media accountability.

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