Strugnell Considering Legal Action Against BAR

Ben-Gurion University professor Elisha Qimron, who is suing BAR in a Jerusalem court, is not the only scholar turning to the law for legal redress in connection with the Dead Sea Scrolls. According to the Washington Post, the recently deposed chief editor of the scrolls, John Strugnell, now on administrative leave from Harvard University, “is contemplating a lawsuit against [BAR editor Hershel] Shanks.”

The lawsuit would apparently be based on damage to Strugnell’s reputation resulting from BAR’s coverage of the Dead Sea Scroll imbroglio. Strugnell told the Post that the effect of BAR’s coverage has been “very grave … It’s not my scholarly work that I’m worried about, but my scholarly reputation.”