FBI Director Kash Patel's Girlfriend Sues MS NOW For Defamation
Alexis Wilkins, the girlfriend of FBI Director Kash Patel, filed a federal defamation lawsuit in Tennessee on Monday, June 1, 2026, against MS NOW and reporters Carol Leonnig and Ken Dilanian.[1]
The lawsuit challenges a December MS NOW article that reported Patel ordered his security detail to drive home an allegedly inebriated friend of Wilkins after a night out in Nashville.[1] Wilkins' complaint says that account is false, says she had no security detail at the time, and contends she is not a public figure, which lowers the fault standard she must prove.[1]
MS NOW published the December article that prompted the suit and, through President Rebecca Kutler, said the outlet stands firmly behind its reporting and declined to discuss the case further.[1]
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📌 Key Facts
- On June 1, 2026, Alexis Wilkins filed a federal defamation lawsuit in Tennessee against MS NOW and reporters Carol Leonnig and Ken Dilanian.
- The challenged December article reported Patel ordered his security detail to drive home an allegedly inebriated friend of Wilkins after a night out in Nashville.
- Wilkins' complaint alleges the story is false, says she had no security detail at the time, and contends she is not a public figure, lowering the fault standard she must prove.
- MS NOW President Rebecca Kutler said the outlet stands firmly behind its reporting and declined to discuss the case further.
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