Los Angeles (AFP)
The trial of Elon Musk, founder of automaker Tesla, opened Tuesday in Los Angeles, the billionaire is accused of defamation for qualifying a British speleologist pedophile on Twitter.
The selection of the jury was to take place during the day, and the trial should be concluded by Friday. Elon Musk, who went to court Tuesday, should be called to testify quickly, from the beginning of the trial.
The whimsical businessman, who is often singled out for his escapades, attacked a British scientist, Vernon Unsworth, in the summer of 2018. The latter described as a "publicity stunt" the failed offer of the boss of Tesla to send a miniature submarine to help the rescue of 12 young footballers and their coach, trapped by the rising waters as they were exploring a Thai cave.
The youth remained stranded for two weeks before being evacuated after a large-scale international operation, in which the speleologist had participated.
Following a quarrel by media, Elon Musk had used on Twitter the term "pedo" ("pedo guy") to refer to Mr. Unsworth, 64, who lives part of the year in Thailand.
Faced with the outcry provoked by his comments on this social network, the boss had apologized to the caver and erased the offensive messages.
He later defended himself by assuring that the term was a common insult in South Africa, where he grew up. "It's synonymous with + old man glaucous + and it's used to insult the appearance of a person and his behavior, not to accuse this person of pedophile acts," had pleaded the boss of Tesla in a document filed with of the court.
Spelunker's lawyer Lin Wood said he was eager to question the billionaire under oath and see "how the jury will respond to his defense strategy."
© 2019 AFP