Missouri Robocall Lawsuit: Virginia Man Ordered To Pay $32.4M

ST. LOUIS, MO — A Virginia man and his companies were ordered by a federal judge in St. Louis to pay $32.4 million in damages for improper robocalls five years ago that promoted the movie "Last Ounce of Courage," and featured narration from former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee.

Gabriel Joseph III and his companies violated the Telephone Consumer Protection Act by making calls to more than 3.2 million recipients without their consent, U.S. District Judge E. Richard Webber said in the ruling Thursday.

Huckabee, a former Republican presidential candidate, was dismissed from the lawsuit.

The attorney for the St. Louis County couple who filed the lawsuit on behalf of all call recipients said an appeal will seek the $500 per call penalty allowed by the law — in this case, $1.6 billion.(For more information on the robocall case and other St. Louis stories, subscribe to Patch to receive daily newsletters and breaking news alerts. If you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app.)

Photo credit: Pixabay