Well. A hit dog will holler.
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For some reason, a Kenny Chesney fan took the singer to court after an impersonator took her for a honky tonk fortune.
According to Billboard, Chesney superfan Patricia Linson was swindled out of a boot scootin’ $310,000 by an imposter claiming to be the “She Thinks My Tractor’s Sexy” singer. According to Linson, the Chesney-scammer told her he was “experiencing financial difficulties” and needed his best fan ever to bail him out.
After she realized she’d been tricked harder than a one-legged man in a hog-kicking contest, she tried to sue the real Kenny Chesney, claiming the “American Kids” singer didn’t do enough to protect fans from potential scammers.
However, a California appeals court shot down her claim last month, according to legal documents obtained by Billboard.
In the Aug. 11 ruling, the court explained that legal precedent does not “require celebrities to warn and protect their fans against third-party imposter scams.”
“We do not doubt that financial scams are becoming more sophisticated and prevalent as technological developments make it easier for people to impersonate others,” the court added. “[But] it would stretch the [the law] what is supported by common sense and sound public policy to require celebrities to post warnings about third-party scams on their websites and social media accounts lest they face liability.”
The Fan’s Troubles with the Kenny Chesney Imposter Date Back to 2021
Linson claims she was first contacted by the imposter Kenny Chesney via LinkedIn in 2021. She explained that the fake Kenny was crying in his beer, detailing a deep bench of problems only she could solve for him with her cold, hard cash. Imposter-Chesney needed Linson’s bank account to help him get to an awards show, with equipment repairs and swanky new music videos.
She added that the Kenny Chesney imposter won her over with what she thought was insider info not yet available to folks not lending him money.
Linson filed the lawsuit back in 2022. While it sought to hold the scammer liable, it also included the real Chesney, suing him for negligence.
Billboard reports that a Los Angeles judge dismissed the claims against the real Chesney some time ago. California’s Court of Appeal for the Second Appellate District backed up that judge in last month’s ruling.
“Linson alleges no facts, and cites no authority, to support a finding that celebrities share special relationships with their fans to support imposing a duty on celebrities that would require them to protect their fans from third-party misconduct,” the appeals court explained.
Meanwhile, Linson is reportedly on the hook to pay the real Chesney back for his legal fees.
There’s gotta be a country song in there somewhere…