The man behind several proposed data centers in southwest Missouri is suing a vocal critic of his developments, accusing her of defamation.
Trent Overhue, manager of NSI A.1, LLC, filed a lawsuit in late August against Katherine Wiltse, of Norwood, for allegedly defaming him and his business. NSI A1 owns the property at 2900 S. National Ave. in Springfield, where Overhue proposed a data center in the basement of the building. Last month, the LLC filed a lawsuit against the city of Springfield regarding the city's current moratorium on data centers. Overhue is also involved in the company behind a data center in Webster County currently under construction and has sued Benton County over its moratorium, as well.
Wiltse has been an outspoken critic
of Overhue's data center projects on social media and beyond. According to a Webster County announcement from May, she was also the one to request a meeting to discuss data centers with the Webster County Commission that drew a large crowd.
The lawsuit notes that Wiltse had made several Facebook posts shared on public groups regarding Overhue, his project in Webster County and his proposal in Springfield, urging the public to voice their opposition. Particularly, the lawsuit is focused on remarks by Wiltse about two alleged fire incidents within the span of three weeks at the Webster County facility.
Wiltse is a southern Missouri Realtor, running her business through Living in Southern Missouri, which also has a dedicated Youtube channel where Wiltse creates videos with advice on moving to the region but also several on data centers, some specific to Springfield. The channel includes a video about the fire incidents and a pinned comment on another video regarding the alleged fire incidents.
The lawsuit claims the Webster County facility did not experience a fire during the three-week period Wiltse has referenced. It explains that on one occasion, a security guard believed a temporary generator was not operating properly and the fire department responded as a precaution but determined there was no fire. The petition states there was no second fire, fire department response or other fire-related incident within the three-week period Wiltse has asserted.
While not mentioned in the lawsuit, Wiltse also spoke in front of Springfield City Council at its regular meeting on Aug. 25 raising her concerns about data center proposals. She mentioned the fire incidents then too, noting a neighbor near the property observed "eight-foot sparks" coming from ducting that was left oxidized.
"In context, the repeated assertion conveyed that Overhue had recently operated an unsafe facility with recurring fire problems and was attempting to place a facility presenting the same demonstrated danger near Springfield homes," the petition stated. "That meaning was defamatory because it tended to subject Overhue to public distrust and to impair confidence in his competence, safety practices, and fitness to develop and operate digital infrastructure facilities."
Marshfield Fire Protection District Chief Michael Taylor told the News-Leader the district has responded to the property only one time since construction began. He said that response was due to a generator malfunctioning and omitting black smoke, noting it was not on fire.
The lawsuit accuses Wiltse's actions of causing Overhue injury to his professional reputation and goodwill. It further claims NSI A1 estimates pecuniary losses attributed to Wiltse's publications to exceed $1 million.
Wiltse told the News-Leader she was advised not to comment on the matter. She has created a GoFundMe fundraiser to raise money for her legal representation.
The lawsuit was filed on Aug. 27, a day before a new state law designed to deter litigation aimed at silencing free speech went into effect. The new Uniform Public Expression Protection Act gives judges broader power to dismiss SLAPP lawsuits, short for "strategic lawsuits against public participation," filed based on communications in government proceedings, speech about issues under consideration by government bodies and a person's exercise of First Amendment rights "on matter of public concern."
Marta Mieze covers local government at the News-Leader. Have feedback, tips or story ideas? Contact her at mmieze@news-leader.com.
This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Missouri developer sues critic of data center proposals for defamation
