Tim Ballard, the anti-trafficking activist whose wildly exaggerated missions abroad were the basis of the hit 2023 film Sound of Freedom, is facing a new legal action from six women who last year sued him for sexual exploitation — leading Ballard to sue them for defamation earlier this month.
The latest complaint is the first federal suit targeting Ballard; it comes from accusers Celeste Borys, Mary Hall, Sasha Hightower, Krista Kacey, Kira Lynch, and Bree Righter. The filing names Ballard associates Matthew Cooper and Michael Porenta, as well as Ballard’s former organization, Operation Underground Railroad (OUR), as defendants. OUR forced out the founder and CEO shortly before Sound of Freedom amplified his celebrity, due to internal complaints of sexual misconduct. A lawyer for Ballard denies the allegations. An OUR spokesperson tells Rolling Stone the suit contains “recycled claims” and that the organization is “confident” they will be dismissed. Porenta did not immediately respond to a request for comment, while Cooper could not be reached for comment.
This time, the plaintiffs have taken the fight to the U.S. District of Utah in order to seek relief under the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2003, a federal statute that allows victims of trafficking offenses to bring civil litigation seeking “actual damages, punitive damages, reasonable attorneys’ fees, and other litigation costs reasonably incurred.” While at least one of the women, Borys, has described Ballard as a “trafficker” in public statements, the new suit marks an escalation of that allegation. “THE ANTI-TRAFFICKERS ARE THE TRAFFICKERS,” reads the heading on the document‘s “cause of action” section.
Continuing the CW, there are additional disturbing details in the full article. The story of Operation Underground Railroad is a continuing grotesquerie. As always, right-wingers love to project. This particular article doesn't even get in to how OUR is part of the broader adoption trafficking complex, which has involved the coerced transfer of children from the poor in the global south to the global north to fulfill rich westerner desire for emotional gratification and prestige.
Over-under on Ashton Kutcher catching a similar callout due to his work with Thorn and his closeness with not only Sean Combs, but Danny Masterson prior to his conviction?