Hillary Clinton has twice blocked a process server from delivering the defamation lawsuit filed against her by Democratic presidential candidate Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, the congresswoman’s lawyer said.
Mrs. Gabbard’s lawyer, Brian Dunne, told the New York Post that his process server was turned away by Secret Service agents at Mrs. Clinton’s Chappaqua, New York, home on Tuesday and was later turned away by Mrs. Clinton’s lawyer at his D.C.-based firm on Wednesday after agents specifically instructed the server to go there.
“I find it rather unbelievable that Hillary Clinton is so intimidated by Tulsi Gabbard that she won’t accept service of process,” Mr. Dunne said. “But I guess here we are.”
Mrs. Gabbard, Hawaii Democrat, filed a $50 million defamation lawsuit against the former secretary of state last week for calling her a “Russian asset.”
“If Hillary Clinton and her allies can successfully destroy my reputation — even though I’m a war veteran and a sitting member of Congress — then they can do it to anybody,” Mrs. Gabbard said in a statement on Jan. 23. “I will not allow this blatant effort to intimidate me and other patriotic Americans into silence go unchallenged.”
On Thursday night, after Mrs. Clinton’s reported refusal made headlines, Mr. Dunne said the former secretary of state had finally accepted the papers through her lawyer.
“Today, after the media picked up this story, Ms. Clinton’s lawyer changed course and agreed to accept service,” Mr. Dunne told Fox News in a statement. “We would have preferred that Ms. Clinton just accept federal judicial process in the first instance, without having to be called out by the press, but in any event, Tulsi Gabbard’s lawsuit against her will now be moving forward.”
• Jessica Chasmar can be reached at jchasmar@washingtontimes.com.
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