Ventura Plans to Take Defamation Case to Supreme Court

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) - Former Minnesota Gov. Jesse Ventura says he plans to take his defamation fight against the estate of slain Navy SEAL Chris Kyle to the U. S. Supreme Court.

An appeals court recently denied Ventura's request for a rehearing of in his case against Kyle, the author of "American Sniper." In June, the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals tossed out a $1.8 million verdict awarded to Ventura.

Ventura said he and his attorney plan to defy the odds, take the case to the high court and go to trial a second time.

Kyle's autobiography was the basis for a 2014 film. Ventura, a former SEAL, took issue with Kyle's claim that Kyle punched Ventura at a California bar in 2006 for offensive comments about the SEALs.