Court Rules Against Hustler in Benoit Case

ATLANTA —A federal appeals court ruled Thursday that Hustler magazine did not have the right to publish nude photos of the late Nancy Benoit.

The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that a highly-publicized death does not give the media the right to publish any images they desire — even if its not directly linked to the event.

The three-judge panel ruled that while Benoit’s death may be newsworthy, the decades-old photographs were not.

Benoit is a former professional wrestling personality who was killed by her husband, wrestler Chris Benoit, in late June 2007. Chris Benoit also killed the couple's 7-year-old son at the family’s Fayetetteville, Ga., home before taking his own life.

“These private, nude photographs were not incident to a newsworthy article,” Judge Charles Wilson wrote in his opinion,” rather, the brief biography was incident to the photographs. Additionally, these photographs were neither related in time nor concept to the current incident of public interest. We hold that these photographs do not qualify for the newsworthiness exception to the right of publicity.”

Maureen Toffoloni, Nancy Benoit’s mother and the administrator of her estate, had sought punitive damages from Hustler after it published the photos Mark Samansky took of her daughter in 1983 in its March 2008 issue.

The lawsuit, which claims that Benoit had asked the photographer to destroy the images immediately after they were shot, was dismissed in October when U.S. District Court Judge Thomas Thrash ruled that Samansky did not violate the privacy of Benoit and that Hustler had the right to publish the photos partly because her death was a “legitimate matter of public interest and concern.”

The decision sends the lawsuit back to the lower court for consideration.

Copyright © 2025 Adnet Media. All Rights Reserved. XBIZ is a trademark of Adnet Media.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission is prohibited.

More News

Le Wand Dive Gets Wired.com Review

Le Wand Dive has been spotlighted by WIRED with a review by tech and lifestyle journalist Amanda Chatel.

Texas Resumes AV Lawsuit Against Aylo Following SCOTUS Decision

A district court judge in Texas has unfrozen the state’s $1.6 million lawsuit against Aylo for allegedly failing to comply with age verification requirements, Bloomberg Law is reporting.

Nadia Jay Stars in Latest From Brazzers

Nadia Jay stars with Mick Blue in the latest release from Brazzers, titled "Fucking the Bath Voyeur."

Blush Introduces 'Splash' Vibe

Blush has debuted its new duck-themed Splash vibrator.

SVibe Debuts 2 New Vibrators

SVibe has introduced two new vibrators.

Tommy Gunn Reflects on His Legendary Past as He Looks to the Future

Tommy Gunn is wearing an eyepatch. It’s not an homage to the classic "Pirates" porn parody franchise, in which Gunn takes on the Johnny Depp role. The eyepatch is a temporary measure to help him deal with a nerve palsy that came out of nowhere several years ago and affects his vision from time to time. Gunn needs his vision. As one of the adult industry’s longest-serving male stars, he still has plenty to look forward to.

Rocco Siffredi Directs New Rebel Rhyder Showcase

Evil Angel has released Rocco Siffredi’s Rebel Rhyder showcase title, "Rebel Meets Rebel."

JuicyAds Wins Trademark Infringement Case Against Fraudulent Domain

JuicyAds has won its World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) case against a website using a similar domain to impersonate the company's site and defraud customers.

Shalina Devine Toplines 'Thr3e #7' From Dorcel

Shalina Devine headlines the latest release from Dorcel, titled "Thr3e #7."

Chloe Amour Headlines 'Unfaithful Betrayal 3' From Bellesa Films

Chloe Amour toplines the third volume of “Unfaithful Betrayal” from Bellesa Films.

Show More