An online story published by a key supporter of Sandra Grazzini-Rucki which made false and misleading claims about jury tampering during Grazzini-Rucki’s criminal trial was taken down by the media outlet after being contacted by Missing in Minnesota about the inaccurate facts contained in the story.

The inaccurate story was published by Michael Volpe for Communities Digital News last Thursday, but the story was later edited with multiple corrections by Jacquie Kubin, President of Communities Digital News, and then republished.

False allegations about jury tampering in Grazzini-Rucki’s criminal case 

Volpe’s story contained false allegations that I was involved with jury tampering during Grazzini-Rucki’s criminal trial in July 2016.

Here are the facts, as detailed in the court transcript from Grazzini-Rucki’s criminal trial on July 21, 2016.

• Laura Adelmannn, a reporter with the Sun ThisWeek in Lakeville, approached a group of jurors during a lunch break and asked them if they would be willing to comment after the trial was over.

• Grazzini-Rucki’s attorney said Adelmann was “not a malicious person” and he also described Adelmann as “totally innocent.”

• Finally, Grigsby’s said there is no “possible basis to bring any motion…” related to the incident.

The incident involving Adelmann was innocuous and it was the only incident during the criminal trial involving a member of the media attempting to speak with jurors.

I did not witness the event, I was not involved with the event, and only learned about it when it was discussed in the courtroom on July 21, 2016.

The incident involving Adelmann was mostly forgotten, until last month when during an episode of her podcast, Grazzini-Rucki told a fictionalized version of the incident which now included me.

Vople then contacted me after Grazzini-Rucki’s podcast aired and questioned me about the false allegations. In my response to Volpe’s emails, I instructed him to review the court transcript which detailed the true facts of the incident.

In the weeks after Volpe first contacted me about the false allegations from Grazzini-Rucki, he either failed to review the publicly available court transcript, or he chose to ignore the facts because he published a false and misleading story.

According to Kubin, Volpe had a follow-up conversation with Grazzini-Rucki, who falsely claimed I was involved with jury tampering during her criminal trial.

Regardless of what Grazzini-Rucki told Volpe, he was instructed to review the court transcript which again, detailed the true facts of the incident.

Latest incident involving inaccurate stories published Volpe and Communities Digital News 

Grazzini-Rucki and her allies have used fake news and propaganda to distort the truth involving her criminal conviction. Volpe also co-authored a book with Grazzini-Rucki’s family court attorney Michelle MacDonald about this case.

Volpe is based in Chicago, Illinois and he disseminates Grazzini-Rucki’s propaganda masqueraded as news. He has never attended any of the court proceedings involving Grazzini-Rucki and the other adults charged and convicted for their role in the disappearance of Samantha and Gianna Rucki. Mr. Volpe is frequently interviewed with Grazzini-Rucki on podcasts about her criminal case and family court drama.

This is just the latest incident involving inaccurate and fake news being published by Volpe and Communities Digital News. Last month, Kubin corrected another inaccurate story by Volpe after he made published multiple false claims about the testimony of Samantha Rucki during her mother’s criminal trial last July.

Missing in Minnesota is committed to a reporting philosophy based on facts, not fabrication

The legal drama surrounding Grazzini-Rucki in family court has created a cult-like group of followers who were drawn to Grazzini-Rucki’s case because many were also involved with their own disputes in family court. Her followers knew little about the true facts involving Grazzini-Rucki’s lawless behavior in court and her unwillingness to follow court orders.

The vast majority of Grazzini-Rucki’s online supporters have never attended a court hearing involving Grazzini-Rucki.  This reckless and flagrant disregard for the truth also extends to self-described “investigative journalists” and bloggers who continue to disseminate misinformation about the disappearance of Samantha and Gianna Rucki and the criminal trials of those charged.

During her criminal trial, Grazzini-Rucki testified that she had been repeatedly “dishonest“ when she previously testified under oath in her divorce and custody proceeding with her ex-husband, David Rucki.

A page has been published on Missing in Minnesota to provide verifiable facts and primary source documents to refute false statements and fabricated incidents made by Sandra Grazzini-Rucki and her supporters: Fact vs. Fabrication.

Missing in Minnesota is committed to providing our readers with court documents, and a reporting philosophy based on facts, not fabrication. Check back to Fact vs. Fabrication for updates, or follow Missing in Minnesota on Twitter.