ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) -
The author and former Navy SEAL who was one of two men slain at a Texas gun range was the defendant in a defamation lawsuit by former Minnesota Gov. Jesse Ventura.
Ventura sued "American Sniper" author Chris Kyle in federal court in Minnesota over a portion of the book that claims Kyle decked Ventura in a 2006 bar fight over unpatriotic remarks he claimed Ventura made.
Ventura, who's also an ex-SEAL, contends the punch never happened.
Kyle's Minneapolis attorney, John Borger, said he's "shocked and terribly saddened" by Kyle's death. He also told the St. Paul Pioneer Press it's "way too early" to determine how it will affect the lawsuit.
Texas authorities have charged a suspect with murder in Saturday's shootings of the 38-year-old Kyle and the other man.
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