BOISE, Idaho — An influential conservative Christian lobbying group in Boise falsely claimed that a drag performer indecently exposed himself during a performance in North Idaho, a judge ruled last week.

But the judge said whether the false statements were defamatory would have to be determined by a jury.

The drag performer, Eric Posey, last year sued the Idaho Family Policy Center for making false claims about his performance during a 2022 Pride in the Park festival in Coeur d’Alene. Following the event, the group launched a petition called “Protect Children from Drag Shows” that included a photo of Posey with his crotch blurred. In an email to its supporters on the petition, it said Posey had “danced provocatively in women’s panties” and some observers reporter that he “exposed his genitals” to a crowd that included children. Videos backed up their claim, the group wrote.

“For what it’s worth, ldaho Family Policy Center has reviewed the unedited footage and can confirm it portrays public exposure of the performer’s genitalia,” read the September 2022 email, signed by the group's president, Blaine Conzatti.

In a podcast the group also posted, Ada County resident Josh Bales made a similar claim: “His genitals actually came out of his underwear at one point,” he said, according to the complaint and previous Idaho Statesman reporting.

In the ruling Friday, 4th Judicial District Judge Patrick Miller said those statements, along with the allegation that the performer danced in women’s panties, were false. According to the court, Conzatti’s allegations about the exposure were based on “extremely slowed down, zoomed in, and brightened versions of the video” where “one can see for less than a second a small image that might be a testicle.”

“It is not possible to definitively conclude whether the clouded image is in fact a testicle or whether the clouded image, even if it is a testicle, is shrouded by tights,” the judge wrote.

The court did say Conzatti could have believed that the “shadow” was a testicle, but it concluded that all that could be definitively seen was a “shadow of something for less than a second.”

“The court concludes that their belief of what might be shown on an enhanced video does not provide them a basis to assert the truth of their statements that Mr. Posey publicly exposed his genitalia,” the ruling said. “There is no evidence his testicle was publicly visible. There is no evidence his genitalia (plural) were exposed.”

Idaho Family Policy Center reiterates false claims

Despite the judge’s ruling against the Family Policy Center, it doubled down on some of those claims.

The organization’s board of directors in a statement this week reiterated that video evidence proved many of its claims. The board focused on the court’s explanation that the word genitalia is plural and that no reasonable juror could conclude the reference “meant a single testicle,” despite the fact that the court also said there was no evidence Posey’s testicle was publicly visible.

Conzatti referred the Statesman to the board of directors’ statement when asked for comment.

The group’s statement also said the court didn’t rule on whether the drag performer exposed himself. But the court said the unedited video footage doesn’t show “public exposure” and that there was no evidence anyone who attended the event saw the “sub-one-second shadow.”

“There is no special lighting visible directed toward his crotch area. The fact one later can zoom in, lighten and slow down the video and then see a shadow for less than a second is but a scintilla of evidence that there was a ‘public exposure,’” the ruling said.

The Idaho Family Policy Center also continued to claim the performer wore “what appears to be boy shorts-style women’s underwear,” after the court concluded Posey wore black shorts.

‘Liberal media will spin this as a loss’

In the statement, the Idaho Family Policy Center said it would continue to fight for children and biblical values.

“While the liberal media will spin this as a loss for Idaho Family Policy Center, this case is far from over. Blaine Conzatti, Josh Bales, and Idaho Family Policy Center stand by the statements they’ve made — and the IFPC Board of Directors believes they will be vindicated in the end,” said a statement signed by Israel Waitman, the chairman of the IFPC Board of Directors. Waitman said the board supports the center’s efforts to “sound the alarm on the indecent sexual exhibitions, including drag shows.”

For years, Conzatti and the Idaho Family Policy Center has pushed for laws to restrict drag shows in public spaces and limit rights for transgender people in Idaho. This past year, Conzatti presented a bill to require those hosting evens to take “reasonable steps” to restrict minors if the event shows people engaged in sexual conduct or would be considered “patently offensive to an average person.” The center also worked on legislation in 2023 to ban gender-affirming care for children.

A trial date to determine whether Posey was defamed has been set for April. The jury will need to determine whether the center accused Posey of a “crime of moral turpitude.”

Posey last year won a defamation lawsuit against conservative blogger Summer Bushnell who made similar claims, posted a video of his performance and urged the public to contact police. City prosecutors said the unedited video showed no exposure occurred, the Idaho Statesman previously reported. Posey was awarded more than $1.1 million in damages in the case against the blogger.

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