A Fairfax County, Virginia, teacher and parent, who both became the targets of social media attacks last year, have now been awarded more than $1 million after winning their defamation lawsuits.
“They’re very relieved,” Jason Zellman, their attorney, said. “I think they feel like there was justice.”
Latin teacher Robert Rigby and stay-at-home mom Vanessa Hall are both active with the Fairfax County Public Schools Pride organization and advocate for LGBTQ+ rights. In January and February of 2025, they became the subject of posts from conservative X feed “The Virginia Project,” run by David Gordon.
“They were referred to by a nickname, Rigby Halling, which was a combination of their last names,” Zellman said. “And then the defendant defined Rigby Halling as a pair of notorious child sex perverts who, for some reason, have free run of FCPS.”
Zellman called the allegations malicious and heinous. The pair was also accused of being part of a child abduction scheme.
“He was also accused of being part of a grooming gang,” Zellman said. “She was accused of having access to children to ask and talk to them about sex.”
During trial, the defense argued the case was about politics, and liberal versus conservative viewpoints. But the juries ruled the social media posts were defamatory, awarding Rigby $350,000 and awarding Hall $700,000.
“I know neither Mr. Rigby nor Ms. Hall did this for the money. (They) did this to send a message that, first of all, these statements were untrue. And that there has to be a consequence for making such blatantly untrue statements.”
Zellman called the case a cautionary tale.
“Everyone’s entitled to their own opinion, but you’re not entitled to make false factual statements accusing others of crimes,” he said. “Your words matter, they have an impact, and just because you’re anonymously posting behind a computer doesn’t mean you can say whatever you want.”
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