Cruise did abandon Suri, says publisher in libel case

The publisher of Life & Style and In Touch, which is being sued by Tom Cruise for printing that the Jack Reacher star had abandoned his daughter Suri following his divorce from Katie Holmes, has fired back at the actor’s suit.

In an answer to Cruise’s defamation lawsuit, filed in October, Bauer Publishing Co says its reporting is “substantially true”.

Bauer’s answer, filed in a US District Court in California, also asserts a number of defences, including that it’s protected by the first, fifth and 14th amendments of the US Constitution, as well as Article 1, Section 7 of the California Constitution.