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Now, we hope, the real game will begin. Finally.
A word to Mr Amaral and to his family, Sir, may this be the end of the horrible nightmare you've been subject to. To you and to your legal team, WELL DONE!
Thank you Isabel!
Thank you Isabel!
Yayyyy
ReplyDeleteYes indeedy.. Yay
The sun is shining today!!
Wow ,what a brilliant result for a man who has been to hell and back.Let the party begin,at last,for him and his family. Its the best possible result,I am over the moon,some good news at last,although with the headlines in some papers today ,it was pretty obvious something was brewing!!! I wonder if any paper has the decency to print this,or even a mention on any news station ??????
ReplyDeleteOH great day! Now I see perhaps why I saw various headlines today in tabloids - to the effect of 'Maddie Alive''
DeleteProjecto Justiça Gonçalo Amaral has just published the original sentence in Portuguese.
ReplyDeletehttp://pjga.blogspot.pt/2016/04/apelacao-145409_19.html
Will just translate the last paragraph of said sentence:
Delete"4. With the above said, it is agreed, upholding both appeals, to revoke the appealed decision and, judging as dismissed the action against them, absolve the appealing RR (Mr Amaral & others) of the totality of the requests. Costs, on boh instances, by the appealed AA (McCanns)."
Plus this little bit:
Delete“It was understood, however, in the appealed decision that, having been the now 1st appealer, Gonçalo Amaral, until 2/10/2007, the coordinator of the criminal investigation, relative to the disappearance of Madeleine McCann, he would be, even after his retirement, in 1/7/2008, subject to the duties of secrecy and reserve, imposed by regulations to the PJ workers.
And, on such terms, even though personal reasons invoked in the introductory note of the book, in a situation of conflict with the rights of a good name and reputation of the appealers, he wouldn’t have, taking into account the results of the investigation, of ample and total freedom of expression – being, as such, his conduct illicit, for the effects of the Artº 484º of the C. Civil (Civil Code).
Of the above, in respect to such, was said, it clearly is inferred that the argumentation cannot be accepted.
With effect, and independently of the reasons invoked by the appealer for the publication, it couldn’t be understood that a worker, even more so retired, would maintain the alluded uties of secrecy and reserve, being limited in his right to have an opinion, relative to facts already made public by the judiciary authority and amply debated (and in a great measure by the initiative of the participants) in the media, national and foreign.”
This makes my day:
ReplyDelete"Costs, on boh instances, by the appealed AA (McCanns)."
Now the "wonder couple" will have a taste of their own medicine...
If anyone with a grasp of Portuguese law or merely local knowledge of this most auspicious news could comment upon the likelihood of any appeal by the plaintiffs (I know what my instincts tell me), then that would go down a treat, in my considered opinion!! :)
ReplyDeleteI believe I can answer this myself now - It must be very close to 100% AGAINST any idea of an appeal, so comprehensive is the judgement!
DeleteSwallow that medicine, Rothley duo!
Yes, it seems they are considering an appeal to the portuguese Supreme Court...Isabel Duarte said so, but added she did not yet know what legal strategy she is going to use (on what legal grounds will she place an appeal on behalf of her clients)
Deletehttp://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3547951/Portuguese-detective-WINS-appeal-against-libel-defeat-Madeleine-McCann-s-parents-NOT-pay-500-000-damages.html
ReplyDeleteBeing reported by Mail Online
Reading the comments under the Daily Mail online report, it is apparent that a lot of people welcome this decision on the appeal.
ReplyDeleteIt makes for very encouraging reading.
Sn Amaral, it's just great news,and great to see the Rewards comming!!
ReplyDeletehttp://pjga.blogspot.pt/2016/04/translation-of-conclusions-of-appellate.html
ReplyDeletehttp://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3547951/Portuguese-detective-WINS-appeal-against-libel-defeat-Madeleine-McCann-s-parents-NOT-pay-500-000-damages.html
ReplyDeletehttps://www.noticiasaominuto.com/
ReplyDeleteCasal McCann vai recorrer da decisão do Tribunal da Relação
O ex-inspetor da Polícia Judiciária (PJ) Gonçalo Amaral tinha sido condenado a pagar em abril de 2015 uma indemnização no valor de 500 mil euros aos pais de Madeleine McCann, por danos causados com a publicação do livro intitulado 'Maddie: A Verdade da Mentira'.
O tribunal cível tinha condenado Gonçalo Amaral "a pagar a cada um dos primeiros [Kate McCann e Gearald McCann] o montante indemnizatório de 250.000,00 (duzentos e cinquenta mil euros) acrescido de juros de mora, à taxa legal de juros civis, desde 5 de Janeiro de 2010, até integral pagamento".
No livro, Gonçalo Amaral afastava a tese de rapto, sugerindo que a criança terá morrido por acidente e que os pais de Maddie terão ocultado o cadáver.
O ex-inspetor da PJ acabou por recorrer da decisão, o que levou a que esta terça-feira o Tribunal da Relação revogasse a sentença de Gonçalo Amaral aos pais de Maddie, noticia a SIC Notícias.
O casal inglês já anunciou que vai recorrer da decisão do Tribunal da Relação.
[Notícia atualizada às 15h40]
https://www.publico.pt/sociedade/noticia/relacao-de-lisboa-absolve-goncalo-amaral-de-pagar-500-mil-euros-ao-casal-mccann-1729519
ReplyDeleteRelação de Lisboa absolve Gonçalo Amaral de pagar 500 mil euros ao casal McCann
O Tribunal de Relação de Lisboa revogou uma sentença do Tribunal Cível de Lisboa que em Abril de 2015 tinham condenado o ex-inspectores da Polícia Judiciária a pagar 500 mil euros aos pais de Madeleine McCann, por danos causados com a publicação do livro intitulado Maddie: A Verdade da Mentira, confirmou nesta terça-feira ao PÚBLICO a advogada do casal britânico. " A sentença foi totalmente revogada. Não deixo de registar a estranheza desta decisão de que vamos recorrer para o Supremo Tribunal de Justiça", garantiu Isabel Duarte.
Com a revogação da sentença, fica também anulada a decisão, antes tomada, de proibir a venda e a produção de novas edições do livro, assim como de novas edições do DVD e a venda dos direitos de autor do livro e do DVD.
A primeira instância tinha dado como provado que o livro do ex-inspector da PJ Gonçalo Amaral causara danos aos pais de Madeleine McCann. A Relação de Lisboa discordou por completo dos juízes do Cível de Lisboa.
A defesa dos pais da criança, que desapareceu em 2007 no Algarve, alegava que o livro foi dado como pronto três dias depois de o procurador da República de Portimão, Magalhães Menezes, ter redigido o despacho de arquivamento do processo contra o casal McCann, com data de notificação de 29 de Julho de 2008.
Para a elaboração do livro, em que o ex-coordenador do Departamento de Investigação Criminal da PJ de Portimão Gonçalo Amaral defendeu a tese de que os pais de Madeleine estiveram envolvidos no desaparecimento e na ocultação do cadáver da criança, a advogada da família britânica, Isabel Duarte, sustentou então que o autor usou peças processuais não autorizadas e proibidas.
Em comunicado, também a editora do livro, a Guerra e Paz Editores, confirmou a revogação da “sentença do Tribunal da 1.ª Vara Cível de Lisboa” que resulta na absolvição de Gonçalo Amaral e da própria editora, da Valentim de Carvalho Filmes e da TVI. Estes últimos tinham sido proibidos de difundir o DVD e as imagens de um documentário relacionado com a obra.
“O Tribunal da Relação julgou totalmente improcedente a acção movida pelo casal McCann, absolvendo Gonçalo Amaral relativamente a todos os pedidos contra ele formulados. O Tribunal da Relação de Lisboa reconhece a Gonçalo Amaral o seu direito constitucional a exprimir a sua opinião”, refere a editora que se congratula com o fim da proibição da comercialização do livro
“A Guerra e Paz Editores congratula-se com esta decisão que faz prevalecer o direito à informação e o direito à liberdade de expressão”, sublinha a editora que garante que o livro “regressará na próxima semana às livrarias portuguesas”.
New York Times:
ReplyDeletehttp://mobile.nytimes.com/aponline/2016/04/19/world/europe/ap-eu-portugal-missing-girl.html?mwrsm=Email&_r=1&referer=
Madeleine McCann's Parents Lose Lisbon Libel Case on Appeal
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
April 19, 2016
LISBON, Portugal — An appeals court in Portugal has overturned the libel conviction of a former Portuguese detective who published a book alleging the parents of missing British girl Madeleine McCann were involved in their daughter's disappearance, the parents' lawyer said Tuesday.
Lisbon lawyer Isabel Duarte told The Associated Press she was notified of the court's decision to uphold Goncalo Amaral's appeal against the order to pay Kate and Gerry McCann 500,000 euros ($568,000) in compensation. That ruling was handed down by a lower court in Lisbon a year ago, prompting Amaral to appeal.
Duarte said she intended to fight the decision at the Supreme Court, though she hadn't yet assembled her legal arguments.
Amaral was part of the police investigation into Madeleine's disappearance from a vacation home in Portugal's Algarve region in May 2007, days before her 4th birthday. In 2008 he published his book about the case called "The Truth of the Lie."
The McCanns sought 1.2 million euros in damages from Amaral, saying they were "totally destroyed" and "depressed" by Amaral's allegations and felt "ashamed" that they might appear to have been to blame for their daughter's disappearance. Amaral had argued in his defense that his claims stemmed from the police investigation and that Portuguese media had already reported the possibility that the parents might have played a role in Madeleine's disappearance.
The appeals court "decided that (Amaral) had the right to do what he did. It said he can write what he wants," Duarte, the lawyer, told the AP by telephone. "It absolved him, said he didn't have to pay anything."
She said the McCanns took the reversal in their stride after a long time battling in Portuguese courts.
"They're used to it," Duarte said.
Portuguese police closed the case in 2008 because authorities had detected no crime, but British police are still looking into it. Madeleine would turn 13 next month.
Anonymous 19 Apr 2016, 18:40:00,
DeleteSomeone should inform the NY Times that the Portuguese police are also "still looking into it".
Madeleine McCann Detective Wins Libel Appeal
ReplyDeleteThe former policeman had been ordered to pay the missing girl's parents £433,000 after claiming they faked her abduction.
17:24, UK, Tuesday 19 April 2016
Detective Goncalo Amaral
Goncalo Amaral made the claims in a bestselling book in Portugal
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A former Portuguese detective who claimed Madeleine McCann's parents were involved in her disappearance has won an appeal against his libel conviction.
Goncalo Amaral, who led the search for the little girl, was last year ordered to pay £433,000 to Kate and Gerry McCann for claiming they faked Madeleine's abduction after she died in an accident.
He made the allegations in a bestselling book, The Truth Of The Lie.
But the McCann family's lawyer has confirmed that a Portuguese appeals court has overturned the conviction.
Mr Amaral has put a copy of the 16-page judgement on a website.
Kate and Gerry McCann, the parents of missing Madeleine
Video: 2015: Cop To Pay McCanns £350k
The last page of the document, which is signed by three appeal judges and dated 19 April, confirms the original ruling was being revoked.
When the original judgement was handed down, the McCanns said they were "delighted" with it, saying the publication of the claims had hampered the search for their daughter.
Madeleine was three years old when she vanished while on a family holiday in Portugal in May 2007.
Madeleine McCann missing
Video: Oct 15: Police Cut Madeleine Team
Even though police dramatically scaled back the search for the missing girl, they still believe there is a possibility that they will find her alive.
Her disappearance triggered one of the most high-profile missing persons investigations in British history.
http://algarvenewswatch.blogspot.pt/2016/04/amaral-wins-appeal-against-mccanns.html?spref=tw&m=1
ReplyDeletePortugal Newswatch
Reflections on current affairs in Portugal by journalist and author Len Port.
Tuesday, April 19, 2016
Amaral wins appeal in McCann case
Gonçalo Amaral has won his appeal against a Lisbon court’s decision last year to award half a million euros in damages to Kate and Gerry McCann.
The award arose from the McCanns’ objection to Amaral’s book Maddie: The Truth of the Lie published in 2008. The overturning of the damages ruling and the lifting of the ban on the book is said to have come as huge relief to Amaral and his many supporters and admirers.
As the former coordinating detective in the original Portuguese investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann, Amaral has always questioned the McCanns’ insistence that Madeleine was abducted. He believes they were involved in their daughter’s disappearance and fabricated a cover-up story.
After last year’s judgement, Amaral described the court’s libel ruling as unfair in that it questioned every Portuguese citizen’s right to freedom of expression and of opinion. “For that reason I do not resign myself to the decision and I will appeal it until the very last judicial instance,” he said.
The court’s latest decision was a unanimous one by three judges. It is another dramatic twist in a long-running saga that may not yet be over. The McCanns are likely to appeal against the latest judgement and take the matter to Portugal's Supreme Court.
The McCanns began their action in 2009. It has been lurching along between lengthy delays ever since. The award of €500,000 plus interest was made last April, though no money was actually handed over. Madeleine’s parents had been hoping for €1.2 million in damages.
http://portugalresident.com/appeal-court-judges-reject-mccanns-%E2%80%98libel-win%E2%80%99
ReplyDeletePosted by portugalpress on April 19, 2016
Appeal court judges reject McCanns' ‘libel win’
Almost a year to the day that former PJ detective Gonçalo Amaral learnt that the parents of missing Madeleine McCann had successfully sued him over his book “The Truth of the Lie”, three appeal court judges have ruled that there is essentially no case to answer.
Ferreira de Almeida, Catarina Manso and Alexandrina Branquinho have unanimously overturned the ruling of a lower court, freeing Amaral from a €500,000 bill for damages and another €106,000 in legal costs.
The McCanns are “almost certain” to appeal - but the fact that the judges were united over their 16-page decision speaks volumes.
For further details, see our printed edition, out on Thursday morning.
Tags:
portugal news gonçalo amaral McCanns
https://mobile.twitter.com/JerryLawton/status/722499589698428928?p=v
ReplyDeleteAccording to Lawton, the McCanns are seething!
http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/7088278/Portuguese-detective-who-claimed-McCanns-faked-Maddies-disappearance-after-she-died-in-apartment-wins-libel-appeal.
ReplyDeletePortuguese detective who claimed McCanns faked Maddie's disappearance after she died in apartment wins libel appeal
Goncolo Amaral wrote a damning book 'The Truth of the Lie' in 2008, in which he blamed the McCanns for covering up Maddie's death
A PORTUGUESE detective who wrote a book claiming the McCanns faked Maddie's disappearance after she died in their holiday apartment has won a libel appeal against her parents.
Goncalo Amaral was ordered to pay Kate and Gerry McCann half a million euros in libel damages in April last year after accusing them of faking their daughter's abduction in an explosive book.
It was today reported three appeal judges ruled in the former Portuguese police chief's favour, meaning he will not have to pay out the cash.
Goncalo launched an appeal a month after losing his long-running libel battle over the controversial 2008 book.
In 'The Truth of the Lie', he said the McCanns faked Madeleine's abduction after she died in their holiday apartment.
He was ordered to pay interest after a Lisbon judge ruled he overstepped freedom of speech limits.
The McCanns announced after the verdict they would plough “every penny” of the payout into the hunt for their daughter, three when she vanished on May 3 2007.
Amaral’s appeal thwarted their hopes of spending the money.
Clarence Mitchell, spokesman for the McCanns, was unavailable this afternoon.
Isabel Duarte, the Portuguese lawyer who represented the couple over the libel case, was said by her office to be in court and unavailable.
Amaral could also not be immediately contacted.
This was later updated to:
Deletehttp://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/7088278/Portuguese-detective-who-claimed-McCanns-faked-Maddies-disappearance-after-she-died-in-apartment-wins-libel-appeal.html
McCann are 'disappointed but not surprised' after Portuguese cop wins libel appeal
Isabel Duarte, the McCanns' Portuguese lawyer, said she was "disappointed" but not surprised by the appeal decision.
She said Madeleine's parents instructed her to launch an appeal of their own, to be decided by Portugal's Supreme Court.
She confirmed: “I have just learnt that the three appeal court judges have decided to overturn the original decision in favour of my clients. It was a unanimous decision. The original decision has been revoked.
“I and the McCanns are obviously disappointed but I am not surprised because one of the judges ruled in favour of a previous appeal overturning a ban on the book.
“This decision was an appreciation of the law and not the facts.
“We can appeal to the Supreme Court which we will do as we have instructions from our clients.
“My understanding from reading the appeal ruling is that the judges have decided Amaral was entitled to write a book the court calls a literary book.
“The court is basically saying he had the right to express his opinions.
“We obviously hope the appeal will succeed.
“The McCanns never received any compensation money after the original decision although the money was deposited at the court so there is no money to return to Gonzalo Amaral."
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/04/19/madeleine-mccann-portuguese-detective-wins-appeal-against-order/
ReplyDeleteI'm glad SY announced they may ask for more time if needed. The Mcs can't say they have no money to search, thanks to GA, because they don't need to search(and have never shown how they intend to do that anyway.) if SY are doing the job.
ReplyDeleteTheir own arrogance in taking GA could be said to have damaged the search by spending money trying to defend their image and taking risks with court proceedings.
If it had indeed been only 6 months to find M, the Mcs would have whined that everyone had given up on M and they needed more funds to find her.
McCanns have taken reversal in their stride..
ReplyDeletehttp://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/mccann-inquiry-detective-overturns-libel-conviction-23hjfk5j6
An appeals court in Portugal has overturned the libel conviction of a former detective who published a book alleging that the parents of Madeleine McCann were involved in their daughter’s disappearance.
Gonçalo Amaral had been ordered last year to pay Gerry and Kate McCann €500,000 (£395,000) in compensation. Yesterday Isabel Duarte, a lawyer for the couple, told the Associated Press that she had been notified of judges’ decision to uphold Mr Amaral’s appeal.
Ms Duarte said that she intended to fight the ruling at the supreme court, though she had not yet assembled her legal arguments.
Mr Amaral was part of the police investigation into Madeleine’s disappearance from a holiday home in the Algarve in May 2007, days before her fourth birthday. In 2008 he published La verità della menzogna (Truth of the lie) about the case.
The McCanns sought €1.2 million in damages, saying that they were “totally destroyed” by Mr Amaral’s allegations. He argued in his defence that his claims stemmed from the police investigation and that Portuguese media had already reported the possibility that the parents might have played a role in Madeleine’s disappearance.
The appeal court “decided that [Amaral] had the right to do what he did. It said he can write what he wants,” Ms Duarte said. “It absolved him, said he didn’t have to pay anything.”
She added that the McCanns had taken the reversal in their stride after a long time battling in Portuguese courts. “They’re used to it,” she said.
Portuguese police closed their investigation into Madeleine’s disappearance in 2008 because the authorities had detected no crime, but British police are still looking into it.
Hi Textusa,apparently the former SIO Hamish Campbell has appeared on LBC Radio spouting about SY have more evidence to investigate the disappearance of Madeleine,How would a former SIO have access to what SY may or may not have in their possession, when they were released from the investigation over fifteen months ago?
ReplyDeleteSY have still not given any details as to why Operation Grange could become a Homicide case,yet the lead detective DCS Guthie, is a Head of Homicide and they (SY)still state it is possible Madeleine may be alive, yet they have used Forensic dogs to have patrolled the Algarve areas looking for an alive child?
https://www.craigmurray.org.uk/archives/2016/04/the-strange-case-of-gordon-brown-and-the-mccanns/
ReplyDeleteThe Strange Case of Tony Blair, Gordon Brown and the McCanns 68
I have a confession to make. Back in 2014 I posted that I was going to write something further on the subject of the McCanns. In the end I did not, because I was surprised by the strong emotional reaction I received, from a number of decent people, who were enraged that I might be prepared to write something not to the McCanns’ advantage. But I regret being so pusillanimous, particularly as so much discussion has been suppressed by the extremely aggressive stance taken on threats of libel action on this story.
So in the full knowledge that some decent people will be outraged, here it is.
This week there have been two more developments. The Home Office has announced that it will fund still further the police investigation into Madeleine’s disappearance, on which £10 million has already been spent. Plus the appeals court in Lisbon has overturned the libel verdict against the Portuguese detective Goncalo Amaral, who led the case and formed his own firm convictions at to what happened. The 500,000 euro libel award to the McCanns is now cancelled.
None of these sums of money would matter in the least, and practically nobody would grudge any expense, to have Madeleine McCann alive, safe and happy. There can be nothing worse for a parent than the loss of a child, whatever the circumstances. If the McCanns genuinely do not know what happened, that must be agonising beyond belief. My grandparents had a nineteen year old son, an uncle I never knew, missing in action in World War 2 and the pain never left them, even when his fate was resolved.
And yet, and yet… It is because our children are so precious to us that we treat them as such. I recall an incident on Jamie’s first birthday, which we spent in a hotel in Italy. I was in the room with Jamie. My then wife had gone out to the car. The birthday cake was delivered to reception and had to be paid for. Jamie was fast asleep. I dashed out of the hotel room, down two flights of steps to reception, literally threw the money at them and ran back up the stairs. I was away under two minutes but have never experienced such adrenalin, nor would wish to again. An overwhelming instinct had kicked in telling me I had done wrong in leaving the baby unattended, even so briefly.
I find the McCanns’ behaviour indefensible. There appears to be a disconnect in the public mind in the UK which prevents people from realising just how far the McCanns were from their children. This is a useful graphic just to see the layout, (do not worry about the other info on it).
maddie2_09_map
The McCanns could not actually see their apartment from the tapas bar due to the wall around the pool. To get back there, they had to use the gate and walk around that wall, which made it a 75 yard hike. And the apartment had double doors onto the street on the opposite side of the block from that facing the pool.
I do not see how anybody understanding this geography can consider that it was normal parenting for the McCanns to leave two one year olds and a three year old, alone in the apartment in these circumstances – for hours, and repeatedly several days running. It is something I would absolutely never dream of doing with my own children. If nothing else, had any of the children been crying and in distress – and the chances of that with three tiny children are pretty high – there was no way they could hear them.
The claimed abduction is not the only thing that could have happened. Cholic. Vomiting. Sore nappies. Coughing. Choking. Bad dreams. Overheating. All kinds of thing can distress children. So far as I can judge, it is not that I am weird in my own views, rather it is absolutely accepted in British society that you do not leave 1 year olds without care of an adult. Why are the McCanns an exception?
cont.
cont.
ReplyDeleteWhich leads me on to the question of why they received such exceptional treatment from British authorities, directed straight from No. 10, to the extent that Blair and Brown eventually gave them a PR representative? I used at one stage to be Resident Clerk in the FCO, a now abolished post effectively of night duty officer. I can tell you from horrible personal experience that the FCO deals with gut-wrenching cases of lost or dead children abroad frequently. I spent one of the most terrible three hours of my life, through to a cold dawn, on the phone with a hysterical bereaved mother desperate to explore any avenue that might give a possibility that the boy who had just drowned in Brazil was misidentified as her son. On average, I am afraid such tragedies get substantially less than 1% of the public resources that were devoted to the McCanns.
I am going to come straight out with this. British diplomatic staff were under direct instruction to support the McCanns far beyond the usual and to put pressure on the Portuguese authorities over the case. I have direct information that more than one of those diplomatic staff found the McCanns less than convincing and their stories inconsistent. Embassy staff were perturbed to be ordered that British authorities were to be present at every contact between the McCanns and Portuguese police.
This again is absolutely not the norm. On a daily basis more British citizens have contact with foreign authorities than the total staff of the FCO. It would be simply impossible to give that level of support to everybody. Plus, against jingoistic presumption, a great many Brits who have contact with foreign police are actually criminals.
The British Ambassador in Portugal, John Buck, had been my direct boss in the FCO. he was Deputy Head of Southern European Department when I was Head of Cyprus Section. He and his staff were concerned by contradictions in the McCann’s story. The Embassy warned, in writing, that being perceived as too close to the McCanns might not prove wise. They demanded the instruction from London be reconfirmed. It was.
I know of people’s misgivings because I was told directly. But material was also leaked to a Belgian newspaper confirming what I have said. It was published by the Express, but like so much other material which is not supportive of the McCanns, it got taken down. Fortunately that last link preserved it. It also shows that the FCO continues to refuse Freedom of Information requests for the material on the interesting grounds that it might damage relations with Portugal.
For the avoidance of doubt, I do not believe there was a high level paedophile ring involved. I make no such argument. Nor do I claim to know what happened to Madeleine McCann. But I do believe that the McCanns were less than exemplary parents. I believe that New Labour’s No.10 saw, in typical Blair fashion, a highly photogenic tragedy which there might be popularity in appearing to work on.
And I believe there is a genuine danger that the high profile support from the top of the British government might have put some psychological pressure on the Portuguese investigators and prosecuting officers in their determinations.
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/madeleine-mccanns-parents-threaten-legal-7797363
ReplyDeleteMadeleine McCann’s parents threaten legal action on people caught selling Gonzalo Amaral's book in UK
18:11, 20 Apr 2016
Updated 20:09, 20 Apr 2016
By Martin Fricker
Kate and Gerry McCann already face fresh heartache after the cop who led the bungled hunt for their missing daughter said he plans to sue them
Madeleine McCann’s parents have warned anyone caught selling ex-police chief Gonzalo Amaral's book in the UK would face legal action.
Kate and Gerry McCann already face fresh heartache after the cop who led the bungled hunt for their missing daughter said he plans to sue them.
Amaral is set to demand compensation from Gerry and Kate McCann after he won a libel court case appeal.
The 56-year-old claims the couple cost him money and harmed his reputation during the long-running legal battle .
Portuguese legal sources say the compensation bill could run into the “hundreds of thousands of Euros”.
Amaral was told pay the McCanns £360,000 after penning a book claiming they were responsible for Madeleine’s death.
The couple, from Rothley, Leics, vowed to spend “every penny” of the cash on the hunt for their missing daughter.
But those plans were put on hold last May when Amaral, the officer tasked with finding Madeleine, lodged an appeal.
Kate and Gerry were left “seething” when three Portuguese appeal judges ruled in his favour on Monday.
They are taking the case to Portugal’s Supreme Court - which will have the final say on whether Amaral should pay damages.
The ex-officer’s lawyer Miguel Cruz Rodrigues announced plans to sue the McCanns just hours after the surprise libel U-turn.
He said: “We are going to advance with a compensation claim against the McCanns. My client has suffered years of prejudice and losses.”
Mr Rodrigues added Amaral has suffered “years of financial losses in which his good name has been called into question.”
A source close to Kate and Gerry accused him of waging a “relentless battle” against them.
The friend said: “It’s exasperating for them and they don’t need this on top of everything else. Mr Amaral has profited from their pain.
“It was never about them winning damages which will now be put on hold while they appeal. This could continue for years.”
The former police chief is hoping his banned book ‘The Truth of the Lie’ can go on sale throughout Europe.
Ex-GP Kate described it in court as “devastating and distressing” during the libel battle with Amaral.
The Portuguese appeal judges said he had a right to express his opinions in the 2008 book.
They also said the McCanns paved the way for people to express their opinions” by giving media interviews themselves.
Cont.
Cont.
ReplyDeleteA spokesman for the couple warned anyone caught selling the book in the UK would face legal action.
Kate and Gerry began their legal battle with Amaral in 2009 after he penned the book.
He said they faked her abduction after she died in their Praia da Luz holiday apartment in May 2007.
‘The Truth of the Lie’ is currently banned from sale in the UK but was a best-seller in Portugal.
More than 120,000 copies were sold before it was removed from the shelves after the McCanns won an injunction.
Amaral was thrown off the Madeleine investigation after publicly criticising British police involved in the long-running case.
He denied defamation and claimed everything in the book was based on police and court files on the case, which have been made public.
Madeleine, who would turn 13 next month, vanished from her parents’ holiday apartment on the Algarve in 2007.
Kate and Gerry were dining with friends at a poolside tapas restaurant in the Ocean Club complex at the time.
The youngster’s twin siblings Amelie and Sean, who are now 11, were sleeping in the same room.
Kate, a GP, said earlier this year that she thinks her eldest daughter, who would turn 13 next month, is still in the Algarve.
But despite a massive police investigation in Portugal and a four-year probe by British cops, she has never been found.
Her parents were dismayed last year when the Scotland Yard investigation into her disappearance was scaled back.
But they were given a boost on Monday when Det Chief Supt Duthie insisted the £12m probe is “ongoing”.
He said: “There is ongoing work. There is always a possibility that we will find Madeleine and we hope that we will find her alive.
“That’s what we want and that’s what the family and the public want and that is why the Home Office continue to fund it.
“There is work that needs to be done still,” added the head of Scotland Yard’s Homicide and Major Crime Command.
The Sun today has mistakenly said the £95k from the Home Office to SY was given to the McCann's fund.
ReplyDeleteThis can only increase the mounting public doubts about them.
Was this a deliberate error? It's such a crass mistake if not.
Our MSM is such rubbish.
I recently read that they gave conditions to SY not to interview them or the Tapas ,no reconstruction, and they dictate to SY who they can and can't talk too re that night. Imagine where does all this priority come from, I was under the understanding it was the police who made decisions. The truth will out one day
ReplyDelete