MANHATTAN (CN) - Lindsay and Dina Lohan sued Fox News Channel, saying they were shocked when a "Hannity" panelist said the mother-daughter duo did cocaine together.
The complaint filed Monday in New York County Supreme Court says the comments were made in a Feb. 4, 2014, episode of "Hannity" featuring "The Great American Panel."
Oscar-winning actor Philip Seymour Hoffman had just died of an overdose, so host Sean Hannity and his guests were dishing on celebrity drug use, according to the lawsuit.
As the panel dug into supposedly out-of-control young entertainers, they spoke about how some of the celebrities engage "in outrageous conduct in which their parents were participants," the complaint states.
Hannity allegedly led the segment with the tactful theme "Early Signs of Train Wrecks and Tragedy About to Happen," the Lohans say.
The program featured "an obituary list of deceased celebrities who succumbed to drug addiction," and guest Michelle Fields hammered home the "the theme of the discussion ... that the parents, including the plaintiff, Dina Lohan, were to blame for their celebrity children's behavior, or that the parents, including the plaintiff, Dina Lohan, were 'enablers," according to the complaint.
Fields, "a political journalist [and] ... a correspondent/host for Next Generation TV, then "falsely inappropriately and shockingly" stated "as a matter of fact" that "Lindsay Lohan's mom is doing cocaine with her," according to the lawsuit.
Fox News released an on-air statement after the broadcast stating that it did not verify the truth of the remark.
The Lohans say their attorney received a letter some weeks later from Fox News' attorney, agreeing to pull the segment and associated blog posts from its website.
But that never happened, the Lohans say.
Calling the comment false, heartless and irresponsible, the Lohans say it harmed their reputations and cost them "loss of acting and entertainment contracts and opportunities."
They seek punitive damages, and want the segment permanently yanked.
A spokesperson for Fox News emphasized in a statement that the network would "defend this case to the fullest."
"The remark about which Lindsay and Dina Lohan complain was made on live television by a guest nearly a year ago," the statement by Fox emphasizes. "We removed the segment from our archives altogether last February and also apologized on-air. At that time, the Lohans did not make any demands for money, and we are surprised they are doing so now."
Named in the lawsuit along with Fields, Hannity and Fox News Channel are 21st Century Fox America, Fox News Network and Fox Entertainment Group.
The Lohans are represented by Mark Heller with the Brooklyn firm David J. Hernandez & Associates.
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