Source: http://mccannpjfiles.co.uk/Supreme_Court_31_01_2017.htm
Timestamp: 2019-04-19 07:06:14+00:00

Document:
Kate, Gerald, Madeleine, Sean and Amelie McCann ― the last three minors represented by the first claimants, their parents ― filed, against Gonçalo Amaral, the publisher Guerra & Paz, Editores SA, the audiovisual production company Valentim de Carvalho-Filmes e Audiovisuais SA and the TV Channel TVI-Televisão Independente, legal actions in the ordinary form, subsequently attached to Lisbon 1st Civil Chamber, demanding the condemnation of the first defendant to pay the claimants the total amount of €1.200.000, plus interest at the legal rate since the summons, as compensation for moral damages arising from the publication by the first defendant, in book and DVD, of his version of the facts related to the disappearance of the minor MMC, third claimant, and the prohibition for sale, publication or disclosure by all defendants, book and DVD in question.
The first instance's judgement concluded that the book written by Gonçalo Amaral, the adaptation of this book for a documentary and the interview of the same defendant were illicit, according to article 484° of the CC 1 and that were verified the other assumptions legally binding the compensation foreseen in CC's art. 483°, wherefore the requests expressed in the lawsuit were considered partly proceeding in the terms mentioned above.
Note 01 The Portuguese Civil Code.
In order to conclude with the unlawfulness of those behaviours, were considered the respective contents of the book, documentary and interview, and the conflict between freedom of speech and right to good name and reputation of the plaintiffs.
Starting the discussion in a logical and chronological order through book analysis, one immediately establishes that what is at stake is not a text with informative content.
In fact, one doesn't find in the book, reported in a stripped and simple way, the facts of the investigation that intended to clear the circumstances of the disappearance of the minor Madeleine McCann on May 3, 2007. No added value is brought to the partial copy of the investigation that the Attorney General's Office did distribute for Social Communication after the closure of the investigation (n°s 65 and 66 of the proven facts).
The book is the expression of an opinion, including the account of the conclusions that the author draws from the means of obtaining evidence produced in the investigation in order to formulate a thesis, an hypothesis of ascertainment of the facts.
...(pp. 53, 57, 59, 144), the statements of the Smith family (p. 115) and the evidence collected by the K9 team (pp. 157, 162, 167).
A first conclusion is that if the book is about an hypothetical checking of the facts or about the opinion of the author on how the evidence collected in the investigation should be read, one shouldn't speak of falsehood, untrue facts, and it doesn't make sense, without a better understanding, to discuss the "exceptio veritatis" (truth exception).
The means of obtaining evidence and the evidence referred to in the book are those of the criminal investigation and most of the facts that the book is concerned with (as well as those referred to in the documentary and interview), when related to the criminal investigation, are mostly facts that occurred or are documented in the investigation (n° 80 of the proven facts).
5.There is evidence of negligence in the guard and safety of the children (n° 24)."
The interview given by Gonçalo Amaral to the newspaper CdM 2 and published in the edition of July 24, 2008 is a way to advertise the book and therefore the thesis developed in it. Here the defendant reaffirms that thesis in so many answers as questions put to him : 1° the girl died in the apartment 2° the testimonies of Jane Tanner and Kate McCann are not credible 3° there are clues of crime simulation 4° there was concealment of the body (n° 48).
The daily newspaper Correio da Manhã is from now on named “CdM”.
The documentary develops the referred opinion in a more appealing way, as it is proper to the audiovisual support, giving it an appearance of police reconstruction of the facts. It steps from the expression of an opinion to the attempt to prove a thesis. It is the defendant Gonçalo Amaral who says it, while the narrator at the beginning of the program: "In the next 50 minutes I will prove that the child was not abducted and died in the holiday apartment in Praia da Luz" (N° 41).
In the documentary, this thesis is clearly stated as the contra-narrative of the abduction hypothesis, as the real alternative to it and to the shelving of the investigation for lack of evidence. This is why the challenge is "discover the truth about what happened that day. A death that many people want to cover up", ending the defendant with this conclusion: "I am sure that this fact [Madeleine McCann died in the apartment] on day will be revealed. The investigation was brutally interrupted and there was political and precipitated shelving. Some hide the truth, but later or earlier, the varnish will crack and the revelations will emerge. Only then there will be justice for Madeleine McCann” (n°s 41 and 42).
In either supports - book, interview, documentary - the presented thesis aims to be perceived as the real narrative of events, compared with the initially sustained in the investigation and by the claimants mediated abduction theory. The same thesis is still held as the truth that is hidden behind shelving determined by political reasons and subservience to the British authorities.
It is that, it appears, the meaning that the average reader attributes to the title "Maddie - the Truth of the Lie", the "truth" being the thesis of the book and the "lie" the abduction narrative.
This theory of the facts comes from the own investigation, it is shaped in the chief inspector Tavares de Almeida's report (n° 9), it was an avenue pursued by the investigation (n°s 10 and 11), it determined the constitution of the claimants Gerald and Kate McCann as “arguidos" and was put within the reach of the media, and soon of the general public through a copy of the inquest (n°s 65 and 66) .
One wonders then what is the difference between 1) asserting – as it was done at a certain step of the investigation or as many commentators do – that there are indices of accidental death, concealment of the corpse and simulation of crime and 2) supporting this view as did the defendant Gonçalo Amaral in those three mediums.
The defendant is not referred to the investigation as a mere commentator of a criminal “fait-divers", a writer of police intrigues or a criminologist. Considering the matter in question here and what obviously contributes to the authority and credibility of his opinion, the defendant was the coordinator of the criminal investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann from the day of the event up to October 2, 2007. It is this particular aspect conjugated with others that are appurtenances - as is the time coincidence between the shelving of the investigation on the one hand, and the launch of the book, the interview and the selling of the book on the other – that are part of the discussion on how to solve, in this case, the conflict between the right of the defendant and the rights of the claimants.
At the centre of this trial, there is a conflict between two existing rights, the right to good name and reputation of the claimants (through the presumption of innocence that they always were entitled to) and the right to freedom of expression of the defendant, in the concrete field of the right to opinion he is entitled to.
The legal protection of such rights of the claimants is based on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) 3, of which the article 12° states that no one will suffer, among others, attacks upon one's honour and reputation, stipulating that against such attacks anyone is entitled to the protection of the law.
However, the article 16° of this great Declaration states, with equal protection, that "everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers."
The criteria of harmonization of the various consecrated rights results of the following art. 29°-2, which states that "in the exercise of his rights and freedoms, everyone shall be subject only to such limitations as are determined by law solely for the purpose of securing due recognition and respect for the rights and freedoms of others..
...and of meeting the just requirements of morality, public order and the general welfare in a democratic society.
Also from the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (4) results the protection of both rights.
Article 10°-1 states : "Everyone has the right to freedom of expression. This right shall include freedom to hold opinions and to receive and impart information and ideas without interference by public authority and regardless of frontiers. This article shall not prevent States from requiring the licensing of broadcasting, television or cinema enterprises."
In spite of the freedom of expression affirmed in this norm and of the prohibition of any interference in it by public authorities of each country, the paragraph 2 of the same article states that "the exercise of these freedoms, since it carries with it duties and responsibilities, may be subject to such formalities, conditions, restrictions or penalties as are prescribed by law and are necessary in a democratic society, in the interests of national security, territorial integrity or public safety, for the prevention of disorder or crime, for the protection of health or morals, for the protection of the reputation or rights of others, for preventing the disclosure of information received in confidence, or for maintaining the authority and impartiality of the judiciary."
The same Convention consecrates in art. 6°-2 one of the fundamental pillars of societies governed by the principles of the democratic State of Law, establishing that "everyone charged with a criminal offence shall be presumed innocent until proved guilty according to law".
As it will appear below, the activity of the European Court of Human Rights (5) in interpreting and precipitating in the concrete case of those standards reveals to be particularly important [retain up yet the principle of the reception of the international law into Portuguese law, in art. 8°-1 of the Constitution of the Portuguese Republic (6)].
The CRP protects the rights analyzed in the chapter on rights, freedoms and personal guarantees, which is the part of fundamental rights.
Indeed, the art. 26°-1 of that legal document, under the heading “other personal rights”, states that to all are recognized rights ( ... ) to good name and reputation ( ... )"
The European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms is currently shortened in the Convention or the European Convention on Human Rights.
Note 06 The Constitution of the Portuguese Republic will be mentioned as CRP.
However, in the same fundamental legal document and with equal dignity, the article 37° establishes the protection of the freedom of expression, stating its paragraph 1 that "all have the right to freely express and divulge their thoughts by words, images or by any other means, as well as the right to inform, to seek information and be informed without hindrance or discrimination".
In spite of the value of this fundamental freedom, the paragraph 3 of the same article refers to offenses committed in the exercise of this freedom by handing them over to the area of the general principles of criminal law and of the unlawful regarding simple social order, while paragraph 4 points clearly to the limits which the same freedom may be subject to, recognizing "to all persons, private or collective ( ... ) under conditions of equality and effectiveness , the right to reply and rectify as well as the right to be compensated for damages suffered."
Glossing the said paragraph 3, Vital Moreira and Gomes Canotilho write : "From n°3 results, however, that there are certain limits to the exercise of the right to freely express and divulge one's thoughts. The freedom of expression and information can not actually take precedence over the fundamental rights of citizens to good name and reputation, to moral integrity, to privacy” [CRP] .
In the Constitution and also interesting for the present case, the freedom of the press is also protected, being one of its greatest exponents "the freedom of expression and creativity for journalists and collaborators” [art. 38°-2a)].
It should be noted that the Constitution itself provides the criteria to resolve the eventual conflict between fundamental rights by establishing in article 18-2 that the legal restrictions on these rights "must (...) be limited to what is necessary to protect other rights or constitutionally protected interests".
The Constitution also welcomes the presumption of innocence as one of the guarantees of the criminal case (art. 32°-2).
Under the aegis of ordinary law, the article 70° of the CC establishes the general protection of the personality, stating that the law protects individuals against any illegal offense or threat of offence to their physical or moral integrity.
... or any legal disposition intending to protect interests of others has to compensate the injured party for damages resulting from violation", and the article 484º specifically establishes that "anyone who claims or spreads a fact capable of harming the credit or the good name of any person, natural or legal, is liable for the damages suffered".
In this regard Pires de Lima and Antunes Varela teach that "whether, by natural or legal persons, a subjective right to credit and good name exists or not, a conduct threatening to cause them harm, in the prescribed terms, is considered as expressly anti-juridical. Never mind that the stated or disclosed fact corresponds to the truth or not, as long as it likely can, given the circumstances of the case, reduce the confidence in the ability and willingness of the person to fulfil their obligations (loss of credit) or shake the prestige that the person enjoys or the good image the person has (loss of good name) in the social environment in which the person lives or carries on their business" annotated CC,, Vol . I, Coimbra Editora, p. 486].
"1. Having a collision of rights, equal or of the same kind, the holders (of those rights) should give in to the extent of the necessary for all (the rights) producing their effect without major detriment for any of them .
2. If the rights are unequal or of a different kind, prevails the one that should be considered superior."
This being the general outline of the law applicable to the decision arisen in this trial, it is important to know how the Superior Courts fall and solve the conflict between the contemplated rights, starting with the ECHR, of which the jurisprudence is particularly industrious and interesting in this matter.
From this same jurisprudence one retains that in contrast to the traditional current of the Portuguese higher courts, this court does not accept, in principle, the priority of the right to honour and good over the freedom of expression/freedom of the press [are examples of this traditional line, among others, the STJ's Rulings (7) of February 14 2002 and March 7 2002 reported in reviews n° 3379/01 and 184/02, of the 1st and 7th sections].
Very differently, according to the jurisprudence of the case-law of the ECHR, freedom of speech and press prevails, admitting strict restrictions, especially when is at stake the debate of matters of public interest.
Thus, this jurisprudence follows an enunciation of ideas with the following essential core: (i) freedom of expression is a postulate of a democratic society and of a State of law, being the basis of pluralism, tolerance and open-mindedness necessary to progress in this kind of societies and to the individual development of its members, (ii) the limitations to freedom of expression must be anticipated by law, pursue a legitimate aim and be necessary in a democratic society, (iii) in debates of matters of public interest the possibility of restrictions on freedom of expression is particularly limited, (iv) the politicians, public figures and senior officials of public administration, when exercising their functions, are subject to wider limits of critic than individuals, (v) considering the limits of freedom of expression, one should distinguish between factual assertions and value judgements, between statements addressed to the opinions of the opponents as opposed to judgements ad hominem and between what is critic and what is insult and (vi) the press has the duty to impart information and ideas on matters of public interest and in doing so is allowed to a certain amount of exaggeration, even of provocation [cf., among many others, Smolorz vs Poland, Thoma vs Luxembourg and Palomo Sanchez and Others vs Spain ; an exhaustive enunciation of the fundamental guidelines of that learned Court of Justice can be read in a Judgement of the Appeal Court of Lisbon of February 14 2012, rapporteur Hon. Judge Rijo Ferreira, available at www.dgsi.pt].
… whether is justified – in respect of the referential criteria mentioned above, with the inclusion of a margin of proper appreciation by the internal organs of each of the Convention's signatory States - the restrictive interference in the field of that same freedom and the consequent move to legal sanctions.
This does not mean, however - in our view - that the cases in which such a restrictive interference is justified aren't intensely relevant. It is enough to read article 10°-2 to weight what it contains in terms of essential values for human beings "[Review No. 4403/07 of 2nd Section. In the same sense, can be read the Ruling of March 12 2009 in the Review N° 2972/08].
It should also refer to the content of the right to honour and the qualities or attributes that it welcomes.
The STJ’s Ruling of May 27 2008 , quoted above, says : "The honour of the person translates therefore into the positive value that they infer themselves from the core of their being, that is the moral and ethic substrate of their existence, while the social consideration, the good name and the reputation translate into the judgment by others about every one. Correspondingly, the right to good name and to reputation is essentially for the person not be offended or injured in their honour, dignity or social consideration by imputation of others and to fight back against this offence and to obtain redress" [ idem ].
Capelo de Sousa teaches that "honour covers immediately the projection of the value of human dignity, which is innate, offered by nature equally to all human beings, unlikely to be lost by any man in any circumstance ( ... ). In a broad sense, it also includes the good name and reputation, as syntheses of social appreciation for determining qualities of uniqueness of each individual at the intellectual, moral, sexual, family, professional or political level" [The Personality General Law, 1995 , p. 303] .
..."the law protects, however, not only that personal feeling of own worth, which can call up the internal honour, but above the projection in the social consciousness of all the personal values of each individual, which can be called external honour : the qualities a person needs to be respected in a social environment, including the good name and the reputation, the social consideration" [ op. cit. p. 587] .
The claimants Gerald and Kate McCann were made arguidos (formal suspects) in the criminal investigation, a status that had the function to guarantee their rights (though not being interpreted this way by the general public) and ceased with the closure of the investigation having the dispatch (AG) report concluded :"It has not been possible to obtain any piece of evidence that would allow for a average man, under the light of the criteria of logics, of normality and of the general rules of experience, to formulate any lucid, sensate, serious and honest conclusion about the circumstances under which the child was removed from the apartment (whether dead or alive, whether killed in a neglectful homicide or an intended homicide, whether the victim of a targeted abduction or an opportunistic abduction), nor even to produce a consistent prognosis about her destiny and inclusively - the most dramatic - to establish whether she is still alive or if she is dead, as seems more likely. (…) Therefore, after everything seen, analysed and duly pondered, facing all that is left exposed, we settle (…) the archiving of the process concerning the “arguidos" Gerald Patrick McCann and Kate Marie Healy, because there are no indications of their practice of any crime" (n° 15).
In the case-law of the ECHR, the principle of presumption of innocence imposes a standard of conduct for all agents, public servants and magistrates involved in the administration of criminal justice.
… made by other public officials about pending criminal investigations which encourage the public to believe the suspect guilty and prejudge an assessment of the facts by the competent judicial authority [HUDOC 8].
In the Allen vs UK case, the ECHR emphasised the importance of the presumption after the acquittal or dismissal of the criminal investigation, explaining that this principle prevents suspects or defendants in such cases are treated as if they were in fact responsible for the criminal offences of which they were accused and stressing that without this second level of protection – the level of full respect for acquittal or archiving – the presumption of innocence would remain illusory or merely ideal.
Likewise, the presumption of innocence requires that the absence of guilt that emanates from it is respected, after the acquittal or dismissal, in all legal proceedings of any kind and by any authority that comes into contact with these facts [idem Allen vs United Kingdom].
In this case, the claimants Kate and Gerald McCann never ceased to benefit from this presumption of innocence and from the behaviour imperative that it places on national judicial and justice authorities and on all the civil servants and agents.
The defendant Goncalo Amaral was the coordinator of criminal investigation from the date of the crime breaking news and October 2nd, 2007 (n° 12).
On July 1 2008, GA retired from the Judicial Police, having the book "Maddie - A Verdade da Mentira" been released on the 24th and sold with the same day edition of the newspaper 'Correio da Manhã', an edition where was published the interview which is part of this lawsuit (n°s 13, 25, 26 and 48).
"The Police have the responsibility of defending democratic legality, insuring internal security and protecting the citizens' rights” [article 272 of the [CRP] ."The Judicial Police is an upper organ of the criminal police assisting the administration of justice, hierarchically organised, dependent on the Minister of Justice and supervised by law [article 1 of the Organic Law of the Judicial Police, approved by Decree-Law n° 275- A / 2000 of November 9, as amended by Decree-Law No. 235/2005, of December 30, then in force].
The criminal investigation chief-coordinators are authorities of criminal police under the terms and for the purposes of criminal procedural law [article 11°-g of the same law].
Note 08 The HUDOC database provides access to the case-law of the Court, the European Commission of Human Rights' decisions and reports and the Committee of Ministers' resolutions.
Under the Disciplinary Regulation of the Judicial Police, the duty of confidentiality is one of the general duties of the members of the Judicial Police [cf. art. 5°- of the Regulation approved by Decree-Law No. 196/94, of July 21].
Alongside this general duty of confidentiality, the Organic Law of the Judicial Police requires from the civil servants working in the Judicial Police a duty of reserve, prescribing that (...) "they cannot make public disclosures related to lawsuits or matter of reserved nature other than what is provided for in this law on public information and preventive actions among the population, and also in the provisions of the criminal procedure law" [art.12°-2]. Even so the statements, when admissible, (…) "are subjects to prior authorisation provided by the national director or the national deputy directors, at risk of disciplinary proceedings, maintaining the eventual criminal liability" [art. 12°-3].
It is a duty that is essential to the preservation of public confidence in the institutions of the administration of justice. The duty of reserve protects the purposes of the criminal action, but also the physical and moral integrity, the freedom and the dignity of those concerned by that action.
The criminal investigation officers, retired for a motive unlike disciplinary sanction, retain special rights, being holders of an identification card for recognition of their quality and the rights they enjoy [article 149°-1,2 of the Organic Law of the Judicial Police and Ordinance No. 96/2002 of 31 January].
The statute of the retirement [approved by Decree-Law 498/72 of December 9] establishes, from its original wording in the respective article 74°-11, that the retired, apart from his right to a retirement pension, remains bound to the civil service, keeping the titles and the category of the position he held and the rights and duties that do not depend on being in activity.
According to the note of the Attorney General Department's advisory Council on February 16, 2006 (Esteves Remedio, in www.ministeriopublico.pt).
(http://www.ministeriopublico.pt/pagina/conselho-consultivo-da-procuradoria-geral-da-republica), only in Portuguese, where are gathered all the recommendations of that consultative body (public access).
The retirement legal relationship is, compared to the public employment legal relationship, a relationship less intense where there is a blurring of the ties between the retired and the Administration, expressed in the reduction of rights and duties. There is even so a 'bond to the civil service', which materialises in conserving the titles and the position of the function exercised and the rights and duties that are not dependent on activity status"
The same notice concluded that "the retired remains subject to duties of private conduct expressed in particular in the abstention of practice of facts integrators of crimes that have a relevant connection with the functions previously carried out and thus affect actually the functioning of the service or in a serious way the dignity and the prestige of the function or of the Administration" (idem).
Bearing in mind that legal mosaic, how to solve the conflict in this case between the rights of the claimants Gerald and Kate McCann to their good name and reputation and the defendant Gonçalo Amaral's right to his opinion as resorting to freedom of expression he's entitled to ?
It appears that the conflict should be solved with the factual data that are present from the outset and that reveal the special condition of the defendant in front of the criminal investigation, condition that he capitalises in the book, the interview and the documentary.
"My name is Gonçalo Amaral and I was investigator of the Judicial Police for 27 years. I coordinated the investigation of Madeleine McCann's disappearance on May 3 2007. In the next 50 minutes I will prove that the child was not kidnapped" (n° 41).
The book conveys the idea that the truth of the investigation is merely formal, while the truth of the author (that would have been met at the end of the line of inquiry he followed up to his removal from the case) is the material truth - "This book still has a greater purpose. The purpose to contribute to the discovery of material truth and the realisation of justice" (n° 23) .
There is no doubt that it is the proper defendant who calls his condition of former coordinator of the criminal investigation and that it is through this statute that the book, the interview and the documentary distinguish themselves - self-qualifying – from the opinion of television commentators, writers or other who gloss about the subject.
But, at least in our view, that same status cannot but mark the limits of the defendant's freedom of expression when compared to the one detained by those others.
Having been in charge of that investigation as a member of the Judicial Police, the defendant Gonçalo Amaral, although retired on July 1 2008, did not enjoy, on the following July 24, in respect of the outcome of the criminal investigation released on the 21st of the same month and year, a large and full freedom of expression.
This freedom was conditioned by the functions he had, functions that imposed him special duties that traverse the status of retirement, including the duty of reserve.
In this concrete situation, despite the personal reasons that the defendant invokes in the introductory note of the book, the freedom of expression should cede through the imperative of that reserve.
It was not what happened and the truth is that, on July 24 2008, scant three days after the release of the dispatch shelving the investigation for lack of proof, the book was launched, sold with the newspaper’s edition, and the interview was published.
The time-line displays well the intention to call for the contradictory, in the public domain, the shelving of the investigation, comparing it with the thesis of the previous line of investigation, told as the true one by a person who had been responsible for the same investigation.
In this form of resolving the conflict between the rights is revealed the illegality of the conduct of the defendant Gonçalo Amaral in respect of the effects of article 484° of the CC.
In disagreement with this judgement, the defendants 1°, 2° and 3° (10) lodged an appeal against it.
In terms of personality rights, article 26°-1 of the CRP states that the rights to a person’s good name and reputation are recognised, as well as protection of the intimacy of private and family life..
The TV Channel TVI didn’t.
...through speech, via image or by any other means, as well as the right to inform, to look for information and to be informed without hindrance or discrimination.
Freedom of the press is established under article 38°-2, concerning freedom of expression and creativity for journalists and collaborators.
Article 18°-2 establishes, in the event of a conflict between fundamental rights, that legal restrictions on these rights are limited to the need of preserving other constitutionally protected rights or interests.
For its part, the ordinary law enshrines in article 70° of the CC, as a principle, that the law protects individuals against unlawful offence or threat of offence to their physical or moral integrity, while according to article 80° of the CC everyone must maintain discretion about someone else’s intimacy of private life.
In case of conflict of equal rights or of the same species, the holders of these rights must, in terms of article 335°-1, assign to the extent necessary for all rights to take effect without major damage for any of them. Article 335°-2 states that, all rights being uneven or of different species, prevails the one that has to be considered higher.
"One of the limitations to freedom of information, which therefore is not an absolute right, is the preservation of the right to a good name. Journalists, media, are bound by ethical, professional duties, rigour and objectivity.
– It is up to the media's right, social function, to broadcast news and express opinions, critical or not, the importance being that they do so with respect for the truth and the intangible rights of others, as personality rights.
– The right to honour, in a broader sense, and the right to freedom of press and opinion are traditional occasions of conflict.
– Criticism is limited by the rights of the targeted person, but does not stop being legitimate when being trenchant and sharp but not offensive, because that is often the style of writers.
Not withstanding, the exposed thesis, according to which the minor died accidentally and the parents hid the fact, spreading the kidnapping hypothesis in order to deceive, is not new, since it is also in the report referred to at n° 9 of the proven facts, having determined the constitution of the respondent party as arguidos and having been made public by the media after the digitalisation of the investigation files was provided ( n°s 65 and 66 of the proven facts).
As determined by the appeal ruling heard in this section regarding the appended injunction, the first appellant intended through (his book) to outline his vision of the facts, once the institution to which he belonged (the PJ) did not allow him, as a professional police officer in a criminal investigation, to respond to attacks against its expertise and honour. We must therefore consider the publication of the book as reflecting the legitimate exercise of the right to opinion.
… a lawful and constitutionally sanctioned right to opinion and freedom of expression of their thoughts.
Moreover, we do not see how the right of the respondents to enjoy, after their constitution as “arguidos", the guarantees of a criminal trial – including the right to a fair investigation and the right to liberty and security - could be affected by the content of a book that essentially describes and interprets facts that are part of an investigation the contents of which have been made public.
Although they were not considered sufficient to elicit criminal charges, nothing prevents such facts of being subject to various assessments, especially in a literary kind of work.
Therefore, and as rights are enshrined namely in articles 37° and 38° of the CRP, the publication in question has to be considered legitimate.
The appealed decision, however, reckons that the first (here) appellant, Gonçalo Amaral, because he coordinated the criminal investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann until 2/10/2007, remained, even after his retirement on 1/07/2008, subject to the duties of silence and reserve, regularly imposed on officers of the Judicial Police in activity.
Under such terms, and despite the personal reasons given in the prologue of the book, the appellant, in case of collision with the rights to good name and reputation of the respondents, would not enjoy the full and complete freedom of expression concerning the investigation's conclusions, his conduct being deemed unlawful under Article 484° of the CC.
Both claimants (here appellants) lodged an appeal for reviewing that acórdão (note : to avoid confusion, this word always designates the decision of the Appeal Court).
Provided allegations and gathered the legal visas, it's up to deciding.
1. The applicants Gerald McCann and Kate (sic) are married to each other.
2. The applicant Madeleine McCann was born on 12.5.2003 , daughter of Kate McCann and Gerald McCann.
3. The applicant Sean McCann was born on 1/2/2005, son of Kate McCann and Gerald McCann.
5. The applicant Madeleine McCann has been missing since 3/5/2007 , resulting in the criminal investigation n° 201/07.0 GALGS, opened by the prosecutor of Portimão.
6. The dogs Eddie and Keela, from the British police, have detected human blood and cadaver scent in the apartment 5A of the Ocean Club.
7. The dogs Eddie and Keela, from the British police, have detected human blood and cadaver scent in the vehicle rented by the applicants Kate McCann and Gerald McCann after Madeleine's disappearance.
8. The applicants Kate McCann and Gerald McCann were constituted (by lawyer) assisted witnesses (arguidos) in the criminal investigation.
These proven facts were established in the first instance lawsuit where the five members of the McCann family were claimants. In this instance's sentence the requests of the three McCann children were dismissed. Their parents could have lodged an appeal on their behalf, but they chose not to. Hence in the judgement by the Appeal Court Kate and Gerald McCann were the only respondents.
H) Evaluating the adequate measure of constraint to be applied in the case (folio 2601 of the minutes)" (al.AT).
"Since the investigation, in these autos, concerns the practice of kidnapping, homicide, exposure or abandonment and concealment of corpse, the first three crimes being punished with a sentence of more than 3 years imprisonment, and since it seems convenient to identify the person who exhibited suspicious behaviour in the vicinity of the place where the child disappeared from, as mentioned in statements of folios 3150, 3154 and sq, the data requested by the public prosecutor being thus very important to discover the truth, I order (...) the soliciting telecommunications operator Portugal Telecom.".
12. The defendant Gonçalo Amaral was, until 2/10/2007, the PJ inspector in charge of coordinating the investigation into the disappearance of the applicant Madeleine McCann.
14. On 21/7/2008, the Republic General Prosecutor informed through a "note for the social communication" that the investigation mentioned in 5. would be shelved and could be reopened at the instigation of the Public Ministry or at the request of any interested party, if new evidence brought forth serious, relevant and consistent inquiries (n° 20).
The penal process is divided in 3 phases, the first, mandatory, being the criminal investigation. It is taken in charge by various police forces, directed by the Public Ministry, the PM itself being under the control of a criminal inquiry judge. The second phase is the criminal inquiry. It is not mandatory and has to be requested either by the arguido(s), by the assistant(s) of the process or by a senior magistrate, but never by the Public Ministry. This phase, a kind of recourse against the criminal investigation, is orchestrated by the criminal inquiry judge and culminates in a crucial contradictory debate. Neither the McCann couple nor the "hierarchy" requested the criminal inquiry phase, a manner of agreeing with the conclusions of the criminal investigation. The last phase is eventually the judgement.
... saw her, or the alleged abductor, despite the exiguity of the space and the tranquillity of the area.
2) The situation concerning the window to the bedroom where Madeleine slept, together with the twins, which was open, according to Kate. It has seemed necessary to clarify if there was a draught, since movement of the curtains and pressure under the bedroom door are mentioned, which, eventually, could be verified through the reconstitution.
3) The establishment of a timeline and of a line of effective checking on the minors that were left alone in the apartments, given that, if it is believed that such checking was as tight as the witnesses and the assisted witnesses describe it, it would be, at least, very difficult to reunite conditions for the introduction of an abductor in the residence and the posterior exit of said abductor with a child, particularly through a reduced width window. It is added that the supposed abductor could only pass, through that window, holding the minor in a different position (vertical) from the one that witness Jane Tanner saw (horizontal).
4) What happened during the time lapse between approximately 6.45/7 p.m. - the time at which Madeleine was seen for the last time in the apartment by a different person (David Payne) from her parents or siblings - and the time at which the disappearance is reported by Kate Healy - at around 10 p.m.
5) The immediate appreciation of evidence, or in other words, the fulfilment of the principle of contiguity of evidence offers obvious and well known advantages to form a conviction, as firm as possible, about what was seen by Jane Tanner and the other interposers, and, eventually, to dismiss once and for all any doubts that may subsist concerning the innocence of the missing child's parents.
...the necessity and opportunity of their trip were clarified several times, witnesses chose not to attend, which made the reconstitution impractical.
We believe that the main damage was caused to the McCann, who lost the possibility to prove what they have protested since they were constituted arguidos (14) : their innocence in relation to the fateful event. The investigation was also disturbed, because said facts remained without clarification (...).
Concerning the other surmised crimes (16), they are no more than that and in spite of our perception that, due to its high degree of probability, the occurrence of a homicide cannot be discarded, such cannot be more than a mere supposition, due to the lack of supporting elements in the files.
It appears that the non involvement of the parents, assisted witnesses, in any penally relevant action stems from the objective circumstances of them not being inside the apartment when Madeleine disappeared, from the normal behaviour that they displayed until said disappearance and afterwards, as can be amply concluded from witness statements, from the telephone communications analysis and also from the forensics' conclusions, namely the reports from the (Birmingham) Forensic Science Service (FSS) and from the National Institute for Legal Medicine.
To this should be added that in fact none of the clues that led to their constitution as “arguidos" was later confirmed or consolidated. Let's judge it: the information concerning a previous alert of the media before the police was not confirmed, the residues that were marked by the dogs were not corroborated in laboratory, and the initial indications from the above transcribed email (17) better examined afterwards, that ended up appearing to be inconclusive.
An "arguido" is a formal suspect, against whom certain supported elements exist, but who is endowed with the presumption of innocence, a principal that here is fully realised. This status is attributed, in order to establish the material truth, on suggestion of the police by the Public Ministry which assumes the responsibility of doing do. The arguido (a) has, it is mandatory, to be assisted by a lawyer. In French an arguido is a "témoin assisté".
Note 16 "crimes that aren't associated to neglect”.
In spite of all this, it was not possible to obtain any evidence that would allow for a average man, enlightened by criteria of logics, of norms and of the general rules of experience, to formulate any lucid, sensate, serious and honest conclusion about the circumstances under which the child was removed from the apartment (whether dead or alive, whether killed in a neglectful homicide or an intended homicide, whether the victim of a targeted or opportunistic abduction), nor even to produce a consistent prognosis about her destiny and inclusively – and that's the most dramatic - to establish whether she is still alive or, as it seems the more likely, she is dead.
Therefore, everything having been examined, analysed and duly pondered, considering what is left exposed, we determined the archiving of the autos concerning the (by lawyer) assisted witnesses Gerald Patrick McCann and Kate Marie Healy, due to the lack of clues of their practising any crime”.
16. The defendant Guerra & Paz, Editores SA is a commercial company whose objective is namely editing, publishing and trading books, import and export included.
17. On 10/03/2008, defendants Guerra & Paz, Editores SA and Gonçalo Amaral celebrated a written agreement (attached at pp. 277-281), referred to as "copyright transfer contract", in terms of which the defendant GA yields to defendant G&P for a period of ten years, the exclusivity of copyrights of the book Maddie - a Verdade da Mentira in printed or electronic form, in any language ​​and in the whole world.
… from 30.001 to 50.000 copies c) 16% of the selling price for each copy sold (VAT excluded) from 50.001 on".
"If the first contractor sells the copy rights of the book in other languages ​​in any country, the liquid income of this sale, net of costs directly related to the sale transaction, will be shared between the first and second contractors in equal parts, i.e 50% for each".
20. The defendant Gonçalo Amaral is the author of the book Maddie - A Verdade da Mentira, published by the defendant Guerra & Paz, Editores SA.
21. On the cover of the book stands, in red, the word "confidential" and on the 4th cover it reads "Reserved reading" and "contains unique revelations".
22. The data sheet of the book (p. 4) says namely this : "Review: Fernanda Abreu. Cover and pagination : Ilidio J.B. Vasco. Photography author : Sandra Sousa Santos © Guerra & Paz, Editores SA. 2008. All rights reserved. © Cofina media for photographs and info engraving, developed by Nuno Costa."
This book has yet another major objective. That of contributing to the discovery of material truth so that justice is done in an investigation known as "The Maddie Case". These are the fundamental values to which I subscribed by imperative of conscience,..
...conviction and discipline regarding the institution to which I was proud to belong. My retirement will not extinguish these values, they'll go on being present in my life.
A criminal investigation compromises only with the search for material truth.
Many things were told so far - truths and lies - and there was, apart from the duty to provide information, disinformation campaigns aimed at discrediting the criminal investigation in development and those who were responsible for it. For me the investigation ceased to exist on October 2, 2007, when it appeared to have outweighed a new English ultimatum on the day of the summit on the Lisbon Treaty, so nothing surprised me more. The previous day I had attended an nth media spectacle, the ultimate forcing to the thesis of the kidnapping with the disclosure by the McCann family of a sketch of a suspected abductor. Nothing surprises me anymore.
An investigation destined for shelving.
...so as to facilitate a possible shelving. This investigation had come to undermine the image of the PJ, its inspectors and Portugal, and that's why perhaps it had to be discontinued.
The constitution of Kate Healy and Gerald McCann, Madeleine's parents, as “arguidos" should have marked a turnaround in the relationship among the police forces and the couple. If, on the Portuguese police side, the break occurred, it seems that the same cannot be said of the English police. There was an agreement between the two police forces to move forward in an investigation that was seriously considering the possibility that the child died in the apartment, but suddenly the English police veered without consistent technical explanation - as we shall see further. We have always found it odd the way the couple were treated, even after they got their arguido status, and their eventual access to police information.
After leaving Portimão, October 2, 2007, I decided to forget this case. It was perhaps better, given the powers that seemed to be involved.
In Portimao I meet Chief Inspector Tavares de Almeida, who was part of the team which I coordinated.
We have known each other since we entered the PJ. The words of the national director worry him, he speaks of an investigation request, already filed with the national director of the PJ. He says the investigation of our work will restore the truth.
– Look ! These people (18), do they know how to sum things up ? How can one speak of precipitation when the McCann became assisted witnesses four months after the facts ? Do not they know the principle of non-self-incrimination ?
He was referring to the legal prohibition to take the testimony of a person as a witness to the point where that person might let know facts that would eventually incriminate them. In other words, when someone is about to make statements on a specific case and when, at some point, it appears that this person might be involved or responsible for the practice of an unlawful act, this person has to be made "arguido(a)". So are preserved the rights and duties of citizens. Curiously, and contrary to what we see very often in the press, especially in the English media, the arguido status protects the (by lawyer) assisted witnesses, since they can keep silent and thus avoid making false statements - as in the case of a simple witness.
– I agree with you. If errors were made in this investigation, the delay in changing the status of the McCanns is one of them. There was too much politics and not enough police.
One could imagine that GA is referring to the unfortunate words (the British police was following the MC instead of maintaining a critical distance) that motivated, matter of diplomacy, his dismissal of the case by the national director of the PJ, Alípio Ribeiro, but no, he evokes the suggestion of a precipitate 'arguido' status made by the latter to the journalist of the daily Público on 02/02/2008) i.e 4 months later.
– Maybe the national director thinks that the McCanns left the Algarve because of the arguido status.
– They stayed in the Algarve as long as the abduction thesis was talked about... When this thesis was questioned , they immediately started talking about returning to England.
– Hence we can conclude that the arguido status was only a pretext to abandon the country.
– You know, there are British journalists who believed that Portugal was a country of the third world ... I did not agree and I have not changed my mind, however only in countries of the third world the head of a ongoing criminal investigation is removed whereas he was not implicated by the investigation that he led.
– There are always valid and legal elements ... Finally. The only obstacle to the management of the investigation, almost political ... are the senior leaders of the police forces.
– My friend ... People do not direct the police forces for personal interest ... They lead in the pursuit of the public interest. This is the only way to understand the role of the police in a democratic State of law.
-- But think for a while ! We can get to the point where only officers agreed by the arguidos will be in charge of some investigations ... It could be a question of 'modernity ' .
6. There is a unlocated body, an ascertainment confirmed by the English EVR (Enhanced Victim Recovery) and CSI (Crime Scene Investigation) dogs and corroborated by laboratory's preliminary reports (pp.219-220)."
5) There are clues of neglect in the protection and safety of children ( pp.220-221 )."
25. The book "Maddie - A Verdade da Mentira" was launched on 24/07/2008 in El Corte Inglês Shopping Centre in Lisbon.
26. On the launch day (24/07/2008), the book was also sold with the newspaper CdM.
27. The book Maddie , a Verdade da Mentira had the following editions in Portugal : 1st edition in July 2008, 30.000 printed copies ; 2nd in July 2008, 10.000 printed copies ; 3rd in July 2008, 10.000 printed copies ; 4th in July 2008, 30.000 printed copies ; 5th in August 2008, 25.000 printed copies ; 6th in August 2008, 10.000 printed copies ; 7th in August 2008, 15.000 printed copies ; 8th in August 2008, 10.000 printed copies ; 9th in August 2008, 10.000 printed copies ; 10th in August 08, 10.000 printed copies ; 11th in August 08, 10.000 printed copies ; 12th in 2008 10.000 printed copies.
28. The book was published through other editors in the following countries : Spain, September 2008, with the possible trading in Spanish in South American Spanish speaking countries ; Denmark, November 2008, with possible commercialisation in other Nordic countries ; Italy , December 2008, with the commercialisation in Italian for all the world ; Holland, April 2009, with commercialisation in Dutch for all the world ; Germany, June 2009 with commercialisation in Austria and Switzerland.
30. Copies of an English and Portuguese version circulate in the internet without the authorisation of Guerra & Paz, Editores SA.
31. The cover price of the book "Maddie - A Verdade da Mentira" in Portugal was determined by the defendant Guerra & Paz, Editores SA on the amount of 13.33 € VAT included (n° 2).
32. The sale of the books was partly on consignment and another part subject to right of return for reasons such as faults, use or not being sold (n° 23).
33. The defendant Gonçalo Amaral received the following amounts from the sale of the book: 2008 and 2009, the amount of € 342.111,86 (n°s 3 and 4).
34. The defendant, Valentim de Carvalho-Filmes e Audiovisuais SA is a commercial society that creates, develops, produces and promotes the exhibition and broadcast of cinematographic and audiovisual works.
35. On March 7 2008, the defendant Gonçalo Amaral and the defendant Valentim de Carvalho-Filmes e Audiovisuais SA signed a written agreement (pp. 282-283) designated "option of rights – deal demo” through which the defendant GA gave up the exclusive rights of film adaptation (documentary and fiction) of a book about the investigation of the disappearance in Praia da Luz.
36. On March 11 2008, the defendant Gonçalo Amaral and the defendant Valentim de Carvalho-Filmes e Audiovisuais SA signed a written agreement (pp. 284-288) , designated “transfer of rights – option contract” through which the defendant Gonçalo Amaral gave up to the defendant Valentim de Carvalho-Filmes e Audiovisuais SA for 2 years the exclusive option rights to adapt the book into documentary and/or fiction that may have the format of a film for cinema or a TV movie.
37. Clause 2 of this agreement states the following: By the transfer of these exclusive right of option, Valentim de Carvalho-Filmes e Audiovisuais SA compromises to pay the author the gross sum of 25.000, subject to legal fees and added VAT.
… the patrimonial content of author rights to Valentim de Carvalho-Filmes e Audiovisuais SA the author will receive the gross sum of 15.000 euros, subject to legal fees. 3) For the transfer of rights mentioned in 2) the author will receive 10% of all receipts national or international receipts for the trading of the documentary (in all platforms and supports invented or yet to be invented) after deduction of production costs.
40. The defendant Valentim de Carvalho-Filmes e Audiovisuais SA produced the documentary Maddie, The Truth of the Lie, directed by Carlos Coelho da Silva, which is an adaptation of the book written by the defendant Gonçalo Amaral. This documentary, in DVD format, is appended to the files.
45. On April 13, 2009 and May 12, 2009 the documentary was broadcast by the defendant TVI-Televisão Independente SA.
The following program is a documentary based on the book by Gonçalo Amaral, former PJ Inspector who investigated the disappearance of Madeleine McCann in the Algarve. His version of events is denied by Maddie’s parents who continue to insist that it was an abduction.
The criminal investigation carried out by the Portuguese authorities ended with the shelving of the files, a decision contested by Gonçalo Amaral.
Rather than finding those responsible, a task for the justice system, the broadcast of this documentary aims at shedding some light and provide facts that might help understanding a case that has remained a mystery for almost two years.
47. At least two million and two hundred thousand people watched the program broadcast by TVI-Televisão Independente SA on 13.04.2009 (n° 10).
CdM : How can you affirm that?
GA : The beach was searched at a time when it is not known whether the body was still there. Dogs were used, but sniffer dogs have limitations, like the salted water for example. Later on, it might have been removed.
50. The defendant Gonçalo Amaral gave interviews to the defendant TVI-Televisão Independente SA on the 16.05. and the 27.05.2009.
51. By the end of April 2009, the documentary went on sale on DVD with the title "Madeleine the Truth of The Lie” - A Powerful Documentary based on the best seller “Maddie - A Verdade da Mentira” by Gonçalo Amaral.
53. 75.000 copies of the DVD were distributed for sale.
55. On the video cover the word “confidential” is written in red.
65. The Republic Prosecutor Office in Portimão determined the creation of a digital copy of the investigation process, with the exception of parts subject to absolute secrecy, and its delivery, upon request, to several people, including journalists, which occurred.
67. The claimants Kate and Gerald McCann have alerted the press about the disappearance of their daughter.
68. The claimants Kate and Gerald McCann gave an interview to the North-American TV program “Oprah" hosted by Oprah Winfrey, revealing the existence of new witnesses, reconstructions (19) and e-fits.
70. This interview for the Oprah program was broadcast in Portugal by the (TV Private Channel) SIC, on the 9.05 and 12.05.2009.
71. The claimants Kate and Gerald McCann, in collaboration with the British television station Channel 4, made a documentary about the disappearance of their daughter, entitled Still missing Madeleine, lasting 60'.
"Reconstituições", in the original document, is here translated "reconstructions", since this is what is meant. In Inquisitorial Justice Systems a reconstitution aims to recreate an event with the proper protagonists, in an attempt for the police forces to understand what happened. It is quite different in Adversary Justice Systems where a reconstruction is the re-enacting of an event with actors and in front of cameras in order to jog the memories of the public.
72. On 15.04.2009, the defendant TVI-Televisão Independente SA signed a license preliminary agreement for broadcasting, exclusively in Portugal, the documentary Still Missing Madeleine for 35,000 €.
73. The claimants Kate and Gerald McCann asked that the license for broadcasting the documentary Still Missing Madeleine would not be attributed to the defendant TVI-Televisão Independente SA.
74. The documentary Still Missing Madeleine, translated Maddie, Two Years of Anguish, was broadcast by (the TV Channel) SIC on 12.05.2009.
75. On 17.10.2007, Clarence Mitchell, spokesman for KMC and GMC said they were realistic enough to admit that their daughter would probably be dead.
All those n° refer to the inquiry data basis.
c. It shakes also the honour, the good name and the image of any innocent person, and already cleared before through the filing dispatch of a criminal investigation (the conclusion of which is that there is no element of proof nor evidence that the person committed any crime), a book, a documentary and an interview, extravagant in relation to the criminal investigation, and not even being part of those communicational supports the mention of that filing dispatch, but instead exactly the contrary of what this dispatch is postulating.
g. The abusive and harmful acts of arguable expression of a retired public agent do not fit in the constitutional or conventional concept of freedom of expression, in force in any democratic country in the world. They challenge without logical, honest and valid support, a judicial decision, untouched and uttered in a process that this same agent investigated, through a comportment contrary to his own professional statute, to the social peace and to third-party personality rights, acts exclusively for financial and social gain and to create a popular phenomenon, the repercussion of which benefits the injured parties and entails substantial and indelible damage to the injured, even because such conduct is prohibited not only in relation to the absolute rights of the concerned ones, but also in view of the duties to which a retired public agent remains bound.
i. The rights relied on by the applicants and already acknowledged by three of the judgements uttered before in first instance, fit in and are justified by the fundamental principle of human dignity, until now characterising the politico-sociological profile of the Portuguese State, with expression in the regulation of the tutelage of the right to good name and reputation, in the tutelage of the protection of one's innocence, in effective judicial protection and in the tutelage of the right to personal life and integrity.
l. In Portugal, regarding the CRP, the UDHR, the European Convention on Human Rights and the Convention on the Rights of the Child, it is not allowed to write, to spread by all means and to comment with every possible nuance, a thesis that criminally charges innocent citizens and never even judicially accused of the crimes that it contains. It is not up to the State and the Courts of Law to protect whoever behaves this way, but, yes, to protect the citizens of such aggressions.
… but like an activity protected by national and international rights, the assertion and diffusion of the thesis proclaimed urbi et orbi (21) by the respondents not even fitting in the scope of possible criticism of this conduct.
On one hand, struck by a vice of erroneous interpretation and application to the case at stake of the provisions of articles 12° of the UDHR, 6°, 8° and 10° of the European Convention on Human Rights, 5°, 6°, 9°, 11°, 13°, 14°, 16°, 17° and 34°to 37° of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations in November 20 1989, ratified by Portugal in September 21 1990, of the articles 1°, 2°, 8°, 20°, 26°, 32°, 37°, 38° and 272° of the CRP (Constitution of the Portuguese Republic), 70°, 80°, 81°, 335°, 2°, 483° and 484° of the CC (Civil Code), 371° of the CPP, 74° of the D.L (law decree) 498/72 of December 9, and the 3° of EDTEFP (Disciplinary Statute of Public Function Agents), dedicated by D.L. 234/84 of January 16 and, in the subsequent version still applicable to the minutes, in law 58/2008 of September 9.
B) when it is more certain that this interpretation and application of said constitutional precepts, is shown incompatible with the inalienable principles of the dignity of the human person, of the general protection of personality and of the right to good name and reputation, and also under the supervision of effective jurisdiction and of the presumption of innocence.
”Orbe” in the original, but this is a dative case : urbi (to the city) and orbi (to the world).
accrued by the party with the unlawful act, shall not be compensated with a lower amount of compensation filed in the proceedings by each of the appellants and previously stipulated for them, in that exact measure, by the judgment now revoked by the TRL.
A. At stake in the present minutes is the book Maddie, the Truth of the Lie written by the respondent GA and published by the respondent Guerra & Paz, Editores SA. The publishing contract was celebrated on 10/3/2008, the book being published on the 24/7 of the same year.
C. The action that originated these proceedings and of which the respondent is a party was also brought against TVI-Televisão Independente SA, which was acquitted by the first instance judgment, that has already become res judicata (final judgement) on this point.
D. In other words, the appellants accepted the acquittal in the first instance of the defendant TVI-Televisão Independente SA which had broadcast twice a documentary based on the book written by the respondent Gonçalo Amaral and published by the now respondent Guerra & Paz Editores SA and, consequently, they accepted that such defendant could broadcast the documentary and divulge in some way the thesis of the book.
E. With the exception of paragraph a) of the request formulated in the action, all other paragraphs are addressed to all defendants of the action, including TVI-Televisão Independente SA, therefore the appellants do not care if the defendant TVI-Televisão Independente SA practices the facts that they intended to beware of with the present action, but concerning the respondent and others they do.
F. With the acceptance of the acquittal of the defendant TVI-Televisão Independente SA, the present appeal that seeks to sue the respondents Gonçalo Amaral, Guerra & Paz Editores SA and Valentim de Carvalho-Filmes e Audiovisuais SA, con-substantiates the abuse of rights foreseen in article 334° of the CC and implies the groundlessness of the present appeal.
… or comments, even on publicly known facts, when they feel those might be unfavourable.
N. The rights to freedom of expression and information and the right to freedom of the press and social communication media are enshrined in articles 37° and 38° of the CRP.
- the first instance found that the defendant Gonçalo Amaral, for having been responsible for the criminal investigation as a member of the PJ, although, meanwhile, he retired, couldn't enjoy full and complete freedom of expression, since the functions he was in charge of imposed on him, in particular, the reserve duty, wherefore that freedom having to yield to this duty, his conduct was unlawful in virtue of the art. 484°of the CC.
The appelants, in the conclusion of their claim for review, despite alluding to their claim to have the sentence of the first instance reinstated, did not make any express reference to the question of the alleged reserve duty of the defendant Gonçalo Amaral, to which, according the same judgement, freedom of speech should give in, which constitutes the cornerstone of the entire construction leading to the conclusion that the conduct of that defendant was illicit, by virtue of art.44° of the CC.
That thesis, as we have already seen, was not welcomed by the TRL (Appeal Court). So, what the appelants claim is that, in order to subsume the fact to the special provision of illegality of the aforementioned art. 484°, enough is the affirmed or disclosed fact to be capable, taking into account the circumstances of the case, of undermining the prestige of someone or the good reputation enjoyed by someone in the social environment.
The central question that must be considered in this present appeal is how to resolve the conflict between the rights of claimants Kate and Gerald McCann, now appellants, to good name and reputation, and the rights of the defendants Gonçalo Amaral, Guerra & Paz Editores SA and Valentim de Carvalho-Filmes e Audiovisuais SA, now respondents, to freedom of expression and information, and to freedom of the press and media.
As the outcome of what has been exposed above, freedom of expression and honor constitute two fundamental rights that, given its relevance, deserved a constitutional consecration.
A broad conception of honour is approved, encompassing the various meanings which are legally recognized to this concept : the Constitution safeguards the "good name and reputation" (art. 26°-1), the CC welcomes the "moral personality" (art. 70°-1), "honor or reputation or simple decorum" (art. 79°-3) and the "credit or good name" (art. 484°) ; the CPP protects "honour or consideration" (art. 180° sq).
seeking to optimize them so that each one can produce its best effects.
Likewise one can see the Ruling n° 634/93 of the Constitutional Court of 4/11/93.
In the light of the Constitution, freedom of expression and honour have the same legal value, turning impossible any principle of abstract hierarchy among them (Gomes Canotilho, Constitutional Law and Constitutional Theory, Coimbra, 2003, pp. 1225 and 1237).
It has been understood, between us, both at the doctrinal and jurisprudential level, that the ECHR occupies an infra-constitutional position, its application in internal order being therefore dependent on conformity to the precepts of our fundamental law and that has a supra-legal value, so that the internal laws, posterior to a internally received treaty, that contravene the provisions of their orders will not, to that extent, be able to be applied by the courts (Rui Moura Ramos, "The European Convention on Human Rights - Its Position on the Portuguese Legal System" and "Implementation of the European Convention on Human Rights - Some Problems", in Documentation and Comparative Law – BMJ, 1980 and 1983 respectively).
On the other hand, on 28/1/03, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe(EC) through the Recommendation 1589 (2003) reiterated to the Committee of Ministers, among other measures, the necessity to turn public the data related to the monitoring of the exercise of freedom of expression in member and candidate countries and the necessity for member states to incorporate the ECHR jurisprudence in the field of freedom of expression in their internal legislation and to ensure the appropriate training of the judges.
This is the case with the case-law on freedom of expression, built on the interpretation and application of the art. 10° of the European Convention on Human Rights, which offers a host of extremely useful criteria for the national courts, already integrating a European consensus, so that internal decisions can not fail to take this case-law into account.
This has caused Portugal to be condemned by the ECHR for violation of art. 10° of the European Convention on Human Rights (cf. the cases Lopes Gomes da Silva vs Portugal (2000), Urbino Rodrigues vs Portugal (2005), Roseiro Bento vs Portugal (2005). Almeida Azevedo vs Portugal (2007), Colaço Mestre vs Portugal (2007), Leonel Azevedo vs Portugal (2008), Medipress Sociedade Jornalistica. Lda. Vs Portugal (2016) and Tavares de Almeida Fernandes and Almeida Fernandes vs Portugal (2017)).
This reflects the growing importance of the case-law of that Court. However, it is clear that national case-law has been operating at a turning point, having for basis and groundwork the pertinence, the dignity and the dimension of freedom of expression, as stated in the STJ's ruling of 7/3/01 (cf. also the STJ's rulings of 7/2/08, 10/7/08, 30/6/11, 28 /6/12, 8/5/13, 21/10/14 and 19/4/16, where the influence of the jurisprudential paradigm of the ECHR is evident).
6. The dogs of the British police 'Eddie and Keela' have detected human blood and body odours in the Ocean Club apartment 5-A.
In this sense, and because the following investigation needed is essential for the discovery of truth , especially the analysis of information on telephone exchanges between the McCann couple and their friends, and other phone numbers, which have shown to be related to events of May 3rd 2007 evening, the autos are delivered to the Judge of Criminal Instruction (JCI).
… exhibited suspicious behaviour in the vicinity of the place where the child disappeared from, as mentioned in statements of folios 3150, 3154 and sq, the data requested by the public prosecutor being thus very important to discover the truth, I order (...) the soliciting telecommunications operator Portugal Telecom.”.
12. The (then) defendant Gonçalo Amaral was, until 2/10/2007, the PJ inspector in charge of coordinating the investigation into the disappearance of the applicant Madeleine McCann.
13. The defendant Gonçalo Amaral is retired from the PJ since 1/7/2008 (n° 19).
14. On 21/7/2008, the Republic General Prosecution office informed through a "note for social communication" that the investigation mentioned in 5. would be shelved and could be reopened at the instigation of the Public prosecutor or at the request of any interested party, if new evidence arose, raising serious, relevant and consistent investigation (n° 20).
20. The (then) defendant Gonçalo Amaral is the author of the book Maddie - A Verdade da Mentira, published by the (then) defendant Guerra & Paz Editores SA.
5) There are clues of neglect in the protection and safety of children (pp.220-221).
40. The (then) defendant Valentim de Carvalho-Filmes e Audiovisuais SA produced the documentary Maddie , The Truth of the Lie, directed by Carlos Coelho da Silva, which is an adaptation of the book written by the (then) defendant Gonçalo Amaral. This documentary, in DVD format, is appended to the files.
68. The claimants Kate McCann and Gerald McCann gave an interview to the North-American TV program “Oprah" hosted by Oprah Winfrey, revealing the existence of new witnesses, reconstructions and e-fits.
71. The claimants Kate McCann and Gerald McCann, in collaboration with the British television station Channel 4, made ​​a documentary about the disappearance of their daughter, entitled Still missing Madeleine, lasting 60 '.
74. The documentary Still missing Madeleine, translated Maddie, Two Years of Anguish, was broadcast by SIC on 12.05.2009.
75. On 17.10.2007, Clarence Mitchell, spokesman for Kate McCann and Gerald McCann said they were realistic enough to admit that their daughter would probably be dead.
Now, as Francisco Teixeira da Mota points out, op. cit. p. 21, The ECHR, in assessing the cases that are submitted to them, grants' the maximum degree of protection to the public debate and to freedom of expression, when public or political issues are at stake, including the public figures themselves and their actions.
This Court in fact considers that freedom of expression, as provided for in article 10°-1 of the European Convention on Human Rights, constitutes one of the essential foundations of a democratic society, one of the basic conditions for its progress and for the development of every man.
As already mentioned, the ECHR has developed a doctrine of enhanced protection of the freedom of expression, when the person targeted by the imputations of facts and by the formulation of dishonourable value judgements is a public figure and when a matter of public interest is at stake.
Actually, being a public figure and not a mere private person, the targeted person is more exposed, unavoidably and consciously, to a tight control of his behaviour and opinions by journalists as well as by the general public. This is why the public figure should demonstrate a much greater tolerance in regard of such control.
As Anabela Gradim points out in "Handbook of Journalism - Urbi et Orbi Style Book", p. 74, Who writes opinion is aware of the partiality of their positions, but simultaneously admits and wishes that these be shared and adopted by a large number of recipients of this opinion - that is the meaning of the argumentation : convert, convince, regiment (Cf. Also Jónatas Machado, "Freedom of Expression–Constitutional Dimensions of the Public Sphere in the Social System", BFDUC, Coimbra, pp.425-6 and 768).
Thus, the enhancing judgment and the logical-deductive reasoning he develops throughout the book leads the reader to the conclusion that the child - whose custody and safety, along with that of her siblings Sean McCann and Amelie McCann, were neglected by her parents, here appellants, though neither reckless nor grossly, as it is said in the filing order issued by the prosecutor of the Republic on 21/7/08 - died accidentally inside the apartment where she was, after which occurred the simulation of her abduction and the concealment of her corpse.
That is why it is not surprising that the facts related to that investigation that the respondent refers to in the book, in the interview and in the documentary, are mostly facts that occurred and were documented in this investigation (n° 8 of the proven facts).
For that matter, the appellants were constituted "arguidos" in the criminal investigation (n° 80 of the proven facts).
animus injuriandi (intention to offend) vs animus informandi (intention to inform) and animus defendendi (intention to defend).
First of all it has to be said that the principle of the presumption of innocence (art. 32°-2 of the CRP, 11°-1 of the UDHR and 6°-2 of the European Convention on Human Rights) is a rule of treatment to be given to the arguido (formal suspect) throughout the judicial criminal process.
As Jónatas Machado points out, in "Freedom of Expression, Public Interest and Public Figures and Equalities", BFDUC, vol.LXXXV, 2009, p. 91, The presumption of innocence, because it's only a presumption, cannot overcome the search for the truth and the right of citizens to the truth. It cannot as well prevent public criticism and public scrutiny of the functioning of justice. The same happens, furthermore, with the attempt to demonstrate the innocence of a condemned person and thereby to move aside the mark of the conviction. The search for truth, including the truth about justice, has always been one of the main justifications of freedom of expression.
Thus, in addition to the recourse to the jurisdictional way, by opening the inquiry (see note p.21) (art. 287° of the CPP) and the complaint to the hierarchical superior (art. 278° of the CPP), the investigation can be reopened if new elements of evidence arise invalidating the grounds called upon by the Public Ministry in the filing dispatch (art. 279° of the CPP).
And the safeguarding of the authority of the judicial power (cf. article 10°-2 of the European Convention on Human Rights) is not alluded to, since is definitely outdated the traditional idea that criticism against the judicial power must be proscribed as it contributes to the undermining of its dignity, authority and credibility in the long term. The best guarantee of dignity of all State institutions in the long run consists in its permanent opening to public criticism.
As referred to in the Attorney General Consultative Council opinion of 16.12.06, quoted in the first instance sentence, by Esteves Remédio, the doctrine considers as duties of the retired that do not depend on the activity situation the duty of loyalty, the duty of nondisclosure and the duty of appropriate conduct, this being insistently reported to the abstention from committing crimes.
And, furthermore, the nondisclosure duty extends beyond the exercise of one's functions, remaining in the course of retirement, but, as in the activity situation, it is required that the conduct affects in a pertinent way the functioning of the service or the dignity and the prestige of the function or of the Administration.
In this way the art. 5°-2e of the DL 196/94 of 21/7, which approved the Disciplinary Regulation of the Judiciary Police, expressly refers to 'the nondisclosure duty'.
In the present case and on the topic of the nondisclosure duty or of the secrecy of justice, which remains in the course of retirement, it must be understood that we are faced with a functional obligation which essentially protects the interests of the service to which the respondent belonged, namely the effectiveness of the criminal investigation.
would not thrust out, in the sphere of private individuals, any subjective rights or legally protected interests, and would not therefore be considered as a source of illicitness.
In addition, the ECHR, in similar situations, takes mainly into account the importance of the cooperation of an enlightened and well-informed public to the proper functioning of justice (cf. Saygili and Others vs Turkey of 8 /1/08 and July and Sarl Liberation vs France of 14/2/08).
In our view, the judgment under appeal is correct by understanding that the argumentation of the First Instance may be upheld and by stating that it would be hardly understandable that a civil servant, even more a retired one, should carry on his silence and reserve duties, thus limiting the exercise of his right to opinion as to the interpretation of facts already made public by the judicial authority and widely discussed (actually largely at the instigation of the protagonists themselves) in national and international media.
That being, in the matter of expressing value judgements, the right to freedom of expression has a broader supporting appetence, given even the exceptional nature of the obligation to compensate for value judgements.
On the other hand, as stated in the summary of the aforementioned STJ Ruling of 7/2/08 - From the case-law which has been ratified by the ECHR, it results an imposition on the mode of thinking : it is not justified wondering straightaway whether a particular piece of journalism offends someone. The starting point should rather be the freedom enjoyed by the respective author(s). Only after it should be questioned whether is justified – in view of the referential criteria of the same court, including a proper margin of appreciation on the part of the internal organs of each of the States signatory of the Convention – the restrictive interference in the field of that same freedom and the consequent passage to legal sanctions.

References: art. 483
 art. 29
 art. 6
 art. 8
 art. 26
 HUDOC 
 art. 5
 art. 484
 art.44
 art. 484
 art. 10
 art. 10
 art. 5