Alan Dershowitz
Alan DershowitzFlash 90

Former Harvard Law School professor and prominent American jurist Alan Dershowitz has filed a defamation lawsuit against Prof. Yoram Lass, a former senior Israeli health official-turned radio personality.

Dershowitz filed the lawsuit against Prof. Lass Thursday, demanding a sum of one million dollars in damages, over comments Lass made on his radio program recently.

Prof. Lass, a former Labor MK who served as the Director-General of the Israeli Health Ministry, gained national attention this year over his sharp criticism of the government’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic, arguing that the government had exaggerated the danger of the virus and was causing excessive damage with its lockdown policies and other restrictions.

This summer, Lass was given a regular time slot on Radio 103FM.

Last Thursday, during a conversation with a caller, Lass accused Dershowitz of raping underage girls, tying the veteran jurist to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein. Dershowitz had served as Epstein’s attorney, but has vigorously denied allegations he was either a close friend of Epstein, or that he was ever visited any of Epstein’s residences while young women were present, calling allegations he had relations with young women trafficked by Epstein slanderous and untrue.

“Dershowitz raped girls with Epstein,” Lass said on last week’s show, adding “and he admitted it, he admitted it.”

“He’s a rapist, he admitted it himself.”

This Thursday, Dershowitz responded to Lass’ comments with a one-million dollar lawsuit, which claimed in part that “Professor Lass’ remarks are libel of the highest order, because they disparage and humiliate Dershowitz and turn him into a subject of hate, ridicule, and contempt.”

The lawsuit claims damages from both Prof. Lass and Radio 103FM.

Dershowitz's lawsuit charges that “the defendants (Professor Lass, together with the CEO, Chief Producer, and Program Editor of the radio station) not only disseminated baseless lies, and not only did they not take any appropriate measures to confirm their veracity prior to or pursuant to the broadcast, they even attempted to lend credibility to their slander (the fabricated accusation that Dershowitz raped young girls together with Jeffrey Epstein) by falsely claiming that Professor Dershowitz admitted these acts and reinforced these clearly worded and viciously libellous claims through repetition to add emphasis.”

Today’s lawsuit is the second recent lawsuit filed by the former Harvard Law professor.

Dershowitz recently sued CNN for $300 million, after it selectively edited video of his defense of President Donald Trump during the US Senate’s impeachment hearings.

In that lawsuit, Dershowitz accused CNN of creating “a one-sided and false narrative that Professor Dershowitz believes and argued that as long as the President believes his reelection is in the public interest, that he could do anything at all – including illegal acts – and be immune from impeachment.”