Jared Paul Stern's Lawsuit Against Daily News, Ron Burkle Tossed By New York Judge

NEW YORK — A judge dismissed a defamation lawsuit filed by a former New York Post gossip writer against the Daily News, supermarket mogul Ron Burkle, and Bill and Hillary Rodham Clinton.

State Supreme Court Justice Walter Tolub trashed Jared Paul Stern's lawsuit in his decision issued Monday, saying it read more like a "Mickey Spillane novel" than a carefully argued statement of law.

He also charactered the suit as a "political diatribe" against the Clintons by Stern's conservative lawyer.

The lawsuit was filed after Burkle claimed Stern had demanded money in a videotaped shakedown to squelch negative news. The Clintons are friends of Burkle, and the former president complained about Stern's contributions to Page Six, the Post's gossip section.

The Daily News reported the fracas involving its hated rival, gleefully chronicling the scandal that swirled around Stern and Page Six.

Stern eventually lost his freelance job with the Post and his fledging clothing business failed. The FBI investigated Stern, but he was never charged with a crime.

In his March 2007 lawsuit, Stern accused Burkle and the Clintons of trying to defame and discredit him. And he claimed the Daily News _ along with a publicist and a former Secret Service investigator _ conspired with them to ruin Stern's reputation.

The judge said the complaint failed to "identify any of the supposedly false and defamatory statements that any of the defendants ever made or conveyed. Additionally, and equally important, is that the complaint does not deny that any acts or quotes attributed to plaintiff were untrue."

Tolub also took a shot at Stern's lawyer, Larry Klayman, saying he was an "avowed enemy" of the Clintons. Klayman represented Gennifer Flowers, who claimed she had an affair with Bill Clinton, in a defamation lawsuit against Hillary Clinton.

The complaint "can most accurately be described as a "political diatribe" by the conservative Klayman, the judge wrote.

Klayman disputed the judge's finding and said he would appeal the decision.

"I completely disagree with the judge's characterization," he said. "The opinion doesn't make sense."

In an e-mail, a defiant Stern, 37, said: "I promise we're going to fight this thing to the death and see the rapacious billionaire and his pals brought to justice no matter what it takes."