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Former CNN Producer John Griffin Sued For Millions Amidst Child Sex Crimes Scandal
The civil suit was filed against John Griffin on behalf of a 9-year-old "Jane Doe," seeking $15 million in damages.
As former CNN producer John Griffin faces accusations of child sex crimes, a lawsuit has been filed on behalf of one of his alleged victims, seeking millions in damages.
Last December, the 44-year-old suspect was federally charged with three counts of using a facility of interstate commerce to attempt to entice minors to engage in unlawful sexual activity, as previously reported. The U.S. Attorney’s Office accused Griffin of paying $3,000 to fly his 9-year-old victim and her mother from Nevada to Massachusetts in the summer of 2020. Griffin allegedly picked the child and her mother up from Boston’s Logan airport and took them to his Vermont residence to sexually abuse the child.
On Dec. 22, 2021, Griffin entered a plea of not guilty.
On Thursday, a “Janet Doe” filed a civil lawsuit with the Connecticut state Superior Court in Bridgeport against the longtime CNN producer, according to court records. The suit was filed on behalf of a 9-year-old “Jane Doe,” seeking $15 million in damages and attorney fees.
“For several years prior to 2020, the defendant solicited young girls, including the minor plaintiff, for the purposes of knowingly persuading, inducing, enticing, and coercing them to engage in sexual activity, sexual exploitation, and/or sexual trafficking,” the filing alleged.
The suit further claimed Griffin engaged with victims’ parents to “sexually train” girls as young as 7 years old. The accusations mirror the initial charges filed with the Department of Justice in December, claiming Griffin used messaging apps such as Kik and Google Hangouts to persuade purported parents to engage their children in criminal sexual activity.
The lawsuit lists disturbing statements allegedly made by Griffin, including, “One of the big lies of this society is that women are delicate, innocent angels, and they are in actuality, naturally, the dirtiest [expletive] possible, in EVERY metric.”
The Department of Justice made additional claims of child sexual abuse, including an event in April 2020 when the defendant attempted to engage a mother-daughter duo into a “virtual training session.” Griffin allegedly planned a video chat where the mother and her 14-year-old daughter would remove their clothing and touch one another upon Griffin’s instruction.
Two months later, Griffin allegedly proposed to a purported mother that she and her 16-year-old daughter visit Griffin on a “little mother-daughter trip” for sexual training, according to The Department of Justice.
Following Griffin’s December arrest, CNN announced his suspension.
“The charges against Mr. Griffin are deeply disturbing,” said a CNN spokesperson. “We only learned of his arrest yesterday afternoon and have suspended him pending investigation.”
The lawsuit alleged that “the despicable acts of the defendant have resulted in ascertainable loss to the plaintiff, including personal injuries, bodily invasion, sexual abuse, and emotional distress.”
According to the Department of Justice, federal prosecutors sought the forfeiture of Griffin’s assets, including his Ludlow home, Tesla, Mercedes, and other property used in the commission of the alleged crimes.
If found guilty, Griffin faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years imprisonment for each of the three criminal counts.
