Legal news for New York personal injury attorneys – A New York teen has filed a lawsuit against ABC, charging that the reality show is a sham.
ABC’s “Wife Swap” is charged with ruining teen’s life
Manhattan, NY (www.NewYorkInjuryNews.com) – A teen beauty and honor student has filed a $100 million lawsuit against ABC and Disney, claiming the show “Wife Swap” was falsely scripted and skewed to make her look like a spoiled brat, as reported by New York Daily News. The girl claims she now suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, panic attacks, depression and suicidal thoughts as resulting from the airing of the show.
Alicia Guastafarro, who was 15 when the show aired in 2008, claims the defendants acted “with malice towards [her], with the intent of embarrassing and emotionally harming plaintiff as a mode of entertainment, to their own profit.”
Guastaferro, now 18, claims she has received death threats and even been assaulted. The stress from the fall-out has also resulted in her now failing grades, according to the plaintiff. She claims that since the airing she has had to face public ridicule and scorn and irreparable damage to her reputation.
The lawsuit claims those involved with the scripting and shooting instructed her to act the way she did, and to not dispute her actions as a false portrayal in later television appearances.
The show was initially broadcast on January 2, 2008, with a viewership of 8.5 million. It is now syndicated internationally, according to the complaint.