Trying your hand at dating apps can be a pain. If you manage to make it past the swiping and scheduling issues, you still have to go through the trouble of meeting the person and seeing if there’s any spark. When things go well, you can either schedule another date or head back to listen to Thinking Like A Lawyer together. When things go sour though, you’ve got to tell somebody.
The details of the bad date usually go to die in the group chat you have with your friends but, when things get really bad, they may end up on Facebook. The Facebook group “Are We Dating The Same Guy” is one of such places, and a California man wants to go to court over what was said about him. From the LA Times:
Stewart Lucas Murrey…sued a group of women after they talked about him in a private Facebook group, warning others about his bad behavior on dating apps.
Murrey, a Santa Monica resident, said his social status took a hit because of the comments made by women whom he claims to have met through dating apps.
Could being talked about on a Facebook group hurt your dating chances? Maybe, but it is highly doubtful that becoming known as the guy who sued a bunch of women over Facebook posts will return you to your rightful position as California’s top bachelor. If you thought the stigma of going dutch on a dinner date was bad, try dealing with potential dates worrying that matching with you could subject them to a future lawsuit:
His June 2023 lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, accused the women of defamation and seeks $2 million in damages. He claims sex-based discrimination because he couldn’t join the Facebook group to respond to the claims made against him and alleges a civil conspiracy.
Murrey said he was labeled a murderer, and the women accused him of having a sexually transmitted infection, according to his complaint.
It is understandable to threaten legal action if you’re accused of being a murderer on a public forum with no supporting evidence, but where’s this $2M in damages coming from? I know California is one of the most expensive states to live in, but if you’re looking at a seven-figure tab from taking your dates to Cheesecake Factory, you’re doing something wrong.
Even if the murder accusation was a bit hyperbolic, reasonable people could look at some of the complaints listed about him in the Facebook group and find it to be creep behavior:
One woman shared a story about an exchange she allegedly had with Murrey after the two matched on the Tinder app. He insisted on meeting her that evening, but she was busy, according to a screenshot of her comment. Murrey allegedly found her Instagram page and tracked her down at a Beverly Hills hotel bar, where she was having a business meeting.
If this happened, warning the people in your general area that an alleged Tinder creep is out there seems justified. It would probably be better for Murrey’s dating life if he put down the complaint and picked up some decorum.
He Claimed 10 Women Defamed Him On ‘Are We Dating The Same Guy?’ Website. An L.A. Court Is Skeptical [LATimes]
Chris Williams became a social media manager and assistant editor for Above the Law in June 2021. Prior to joining the staff, he moonlighted as a minor Memelord™ in the Facebook group Law School Memes for Edgy T14s. He endured Missouri long enough to graduate from Washington University in St. Louis School of Law. He is a former boatbuilder who cannot swim, a published author on critical race theory, philosophy, and humor, and has a love for cycling that occasionally annoys his peers. You can reach him by email at cwilliams@abovethelaw.com and by tweet at @WritesForRent.