More damages possible over nude photo

ST. LOUIS, Dec. 29 (UPI) -- A woman awarded $100,000 by a jury over a photo of her nude torso appearing in a St. Louis newspaper without her consent can seek more damages, a court ruled.

The woman, who now lives in Georgia and is identified only as "Jane Doe," had sued Body Aesthetic Plastic Surgery and Skin Care Center Inc. of St. Louis and three doctors, over the photo, which appeared in a 2006 Riverfront Times article about plastic surgery, The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported Thursday.

The Riverfront Times was not sued, but one of the doctors, V. Leroy Young, blamed Times reporter Kristin Hinman, saying she had promised not to use the photos and to let him review the article before it was published.

Lawyers for the practice cited those claims in arguing against punitive damages, and the plaintiff received the $100,000 in compensatory damages in November 2009, when the jury found the practice and doctors violated their fiduciary duty to her. But jurors never heard from Hinman, who denied both claims.

On Wednesday, the 8th U.S. Court of Appeals said jurors should have heard Hinman's testimony and ruled a new jury should hear from her in deciding whether to award punitive damages for breach of fiduciary duties.

But the appeals court did not order a full new trial.

The plaintiff had claimed invasion of privacy, breach of fiduciary duty, wrongful commercial appropriation and exploitation of her image and medical information.