Judge denies motion for new Gawker-Hulk Hogan trial

FILE - In this Monday, March 21, 2016, file photo, Hulk Hogan, whose given name is Terry Bollea, left, looks on in court moments after a jury returned its decision in St. Petersburg, Fla. Billionaire tech investor Peter Thiel has been secretly funding Hulk Hogan’s lawsuit against Gawker Media for publishing a sex tape, according to reports in Forbes and The New York Times. (Dirk Shadd/The Tampa Bay Times via AP, Pool, File) FILE - In this Monday, March 21, 2016, file photo, Hulk Hogan, whose given name is Terry Bollea, left, looks on in court moments after a jury returned its decision in St. Petersburg, Fla. Billionaire tech investor Peter Thiel has been secretly funding Hulk Hogan’s lawsuit against Gawker Media for publishing a sex tape, according to reports in Forbes and The New York Times. (Dirk Shadd/The Tampa Bay Times via AP, Pool, File)

By Associated Press May 25, 2016 2 min read

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) – A Florida judge on Wednesday denied Gawker’s motion for a new trial in the Hulk Hogan sex-video case and won’t reduce a $140 million jury verdict.

Judge Pamela Campbell did not elaborate on her decision, the latest development in a yearslong legal fight between Hogan, whose real name is Terry Bollea, and the gossip website.

Hogan sued Gawker after it posted a 2007 video of him having sex with Heather Clem, wife of his then-best friend Bubba The Love Sponge Clem, a local Tampa DJ who made the video. During the Gawker trial, Hogan mournfully described how Clem betrayed his trust.

The three-week trial was a lurid inside look at the business of celebrity gossip and a debate over newsworthiness versus celebrity privacy.

In March, a Pinellas County jury awarded Hogan $115 million in compensatory damages plus an added $25 million in punitive damages.