TikTok influencer ordered to pay $10,000,000 in damages to Idaho professor following false murder claims
It took just two hours for the jury to reach its decision
A TikTok creator known for theorizing about high-profile murder cases has been slapped with a $10 million fine, ordered to pay substantial damages to a university professor she linked to the brutal slaying of four students in November 2022.
Serving as a warning that there can be consequences to what you say online, 41-year-old Ashley Guillard has been found liable for defamation over a series of TikTok videos she made about the University of Idaho's Rebecca Scofield.
Known for using 'spiritual intuition' and turning to tarot cards, Guillard has made a name for herself due to the Moscow college student murders that claimed the lives of Ethan Chapin, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle, and Kaylee Goncalves.
Shortly after Bryan Kohberger was arrested for the murders, Guillard made a video claiming that Scofield was responsible for their deaths.
Advert
The Idaho Statesman reports that jurors deliberated for just two hours before awarding Schofield far more than what her attorneys were seeking. This includes $7.5 million for punitive damages designed to punish Guillard, and the rest is compensatory for actual costs like medical bills.
A court complaint explained how Guillard was sent several cease and desist warnings, although she continued to post about Scofield and claimed that the history professor had orchestrated the murders after one of the victims threatened to make a romantic relationship between them public. She also posted photos and contact information for Scofield.
Despite unsealed court records maintaining that Kohberger had stabbed his victims a total of 150 times, Guillard continued to post about Scofield. Kohberger pleaded guilty to the murders in July 2025, although Guillard was apparently still making videos up until August 2025. Scofield told the court how she'd developed severe anxiety, PTSD, and intense nerve pain due to Guillard's false allegations. She says that the 112 videos caused irreversible reputation harm and made it hard for her to work in her position at the University of Idaho.
Guillard represented herself in the trial and appeared as her only witness. She had previously cross-examined herself in a question-and-answer format when called forward by Scofield’s lead attorney, Wendy Olson.
The defense is said to have dived into Guillard's history as a US Army veteran who had a background in fields related to business and human resources. Guillard went on to say how she left her husband to explore a full-time "spiritual journey," hoping to raise awareness about the murders when she first made a video about it in November 2022.
Olson noted that Guillard hadn't contacted authorities until after she'd made 'multiple' videos implicating Scofield.
Guillard and Scofield finally came face-to-face after years of the former's accusations, with the professor stating: "You spoke lies into a camera, about me and my husband. You were making (dozens) of videos about me, someone you never met, you never talked to — someone you had no connection to.
"I don’t know how anyone could not feel threatened by that level of interest from someone they had never met.”
While being examined, a defiant Guillard admitted that tarot cards are "opinion at best" but added: "It was my understanding that I do not have to hold facts or documents to exercise speech."
Her closing argument maintained that there had been no impact on Scofield, concluding: "It is reasonable in my shoes that I believe Scofield to be a part of these murders. It is reasonable for a person to want to warn the public if they think a killer is on the loose and still a part of the community...Any suggestion that her life was interrupted was her own choice."
In a statement to PEOPLE after the verdict, Scofield said: "The $10 million verdict reinforces the judge’s decision and sends the clear message that false statements online have consequences in the real world for real people and are unacceptable in our community."
She concluded: "The murders of the four students on November 13, 2022, was the darkest chapter in our university’s history. Today’s decision shows that respect and care should always be granted to victims during these tragedies.”