Judge Orders Wig Store Owner to Pay Customer $24K for Online Comments

A Newport Beach business owner who took to the Internet to combat a "disgruntled customer," was ordered to pay $24,000 for her online posts, according to a report in the Orange County Register.

Constance Walsh, owner of Newport Beach's Wiggin Out, was ordered Monday by an Orange County judge to pay former customer Cheryl Sanders $24,000  for "intentional infliction of emotional distress and defamation," the newspaper reported.

The two women began butting heads in 2009 after Sanders bought a wig for her mother, who suffered from breast cancer, from the wig shop. According to the Register, Walsh sold the wig as "custom made," but when Sanders found out it was not she tried to return the wig via Federal Express.

In small claims court a judge ruled in favor of Sanders.

Walsh later wrote a rebuttal to a post on RipoffReport.com that was critical of Wiggin Out. In her rebuttal, according to the newspaper, Walsh said the check from Sanders was written from an unauthorized company account.

In other online posts, which were later tied to Walsh's email, Sanders was accused of taking bribes at her job with the city of Anaheim.

Read the full story on the Orange County Register.

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