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AFP
Mr. Musk (D) Called British Diver Mr. Unsworth (L) "Pedo Guy"
Elon Musk has to defend himself in court after calling a diver who helped save Thai schoolchildren trapped in a cave, a pedophile, said a Los Angeles judge.
The Federal Court Judge set the trial date as October 22.
Mr Musk is sued by Vern Unsworth, who helped save the 12 boys from the Tham Luang caves in Thailand.
Tesla's boss called Unsworth "pedo" in a post on Twitter after the British said that Musk's attempt to rescue was a "feat".
Why did it come to court?
Unsworth helped recruit experienced divers in the British caves, who helped free the boys who were trapped in the cave due to the rising waters in July 2018.
As efforts continued, Mr. Musk sent to Thailand engineers from his company Tesla and a small submarine to help release the boys. It has never been used.
In an interview with CNN, Mr Unsworth described Mr Musk's efforts as a "publicity stunt".
Responding to a series of tweets, Mr. Musk explained how the submarine could work and called Mr. Unsworth a "pedo guy".
Mr. Musk promptly excused himself and suppressed the offending tweets, claiming that he had acted "angrily".
- Who is Elon Musk?
- The rescue of the Thai caves: what happened next?
But he reignited the rank in September.
In an email to a Buzzfeed reporter, he implored the journalist to "know what was really going on" and suggested that the diver had not taken any part in the rescue of the cave.
Mr Unsworth claims at least USD 75,000 (£ 57,700) in compensation plus punitive damages in his trial in September 2018.
Vern Unsworth (R) helped major international cave rescuers participate in the mission, including Rob Harper (left).
The prosecution is also seeking a court order preventing Mr. Musk from making other derogatory comments.
According to the court, Tesla's CEO has defamed him by "illegal, unsustainable and reprehensible charges".
In their application for dismissal, Mr. Musk's lawyers argued that the remarks were "imaginary" or "abusive" insults, protected by the American First Amendment.
But the judge said Mr Musk was not communicating under "hot and unstable" conditions that could explain possible excesses.
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