BAD NEWS FOR AMARAL - HE LOSES

http://www.dn.pt/inicio/portugal/interior.aspx?content_id=4353699

Court reveals today proved matter against Gonçalo Amaral without presence of McCanns

Judge will proceed today to the statement of the facts that will be considered for the award of the process. Kate and Gerry McCann claim compensation of 1.2 million euros.
The court today reveals the matter proved at the trial of the case against former inspector Gonçalo Amaral by the parents of Madeleine McCann, missing British child in May 2007, which will be absent from the session in the Palace of Justice in Lisbon.
Judge Emilia Castro Melo and shall communicate the facts to be considered for the process of judgment, in which Kate and Gerry McCann claim compensation of 1.2 million euros to former Inspector of Judicial Police, for defamation and violation of rights and freedoms of the British family.
This action creeps in court for over five years, with successive postponements of trial sessions and an attempted extrajudicial settlement between the parties, which was never realized.
At issue is the book "Maddie: The Truth of the Lie", written by Gonçalo Amaral, in which the former coordinator of the Department of Criminal Investigation of Portimão Judicial Police defended the thesis that the parents of Madeleine McCann have been involved in the disappearance and in the child's corpse concealment.
Madeleine McCann disappeared after 4 years in the tourist village of Praia da Luz in the Algarve, where the family was on vacation.

Martin Brunt @skymartinbrunt · 28m 28 minutes ago
#Madeleine Lisbon judge rules ex-cop's book caused McCanns hurt and emotional distress. From private hearing ahead of libel judgement

Friar Balsam ‏@Friar_Balsam 14m14 minutes ago
@skymartinbrunt That's entirely inaccurate. You have read a press release! Try reading the actual judgement. http://themaddiecasefiles.com/topic24300.html

Kate and Gerry McCann win court victory in £1million libel battle against ex-police chief

MADELEINE McCann’s parents won an important victory in their £1 million libel battle against an ex-police chief yesterday.

A Portuguese judge concluded the couple were “emotionally hurt” by the former-detective’s book about the tragedy.

She also ruled Goncalo Amaral appeared to breach strict secrecy rules by including confidential information from official files.

Kate and Gerry McCann are suing Mr Amaral for £1 million over allegations in his 2008 book The Truth of the Lie.

The detective headed the first police investigation into the disappearance of three-year-old Madeleine who vanished from an Algarve resort in May 2007.

He published his book three days after the Portuguese shelved inquiries into the case.

Last year, the McCanns told a court in Lisbon they were left “devastated and crushed” by claims in the book.

In The Truth of the Lie, Mr Amaral accused them of faking their daughter’s kidnap to cover up her death in the holiday apartment in Praia da Luz.

His allegations were also the basis of a Portuguese television documentary.

During her emotional testimony, Mrs McCann said: “I believe that’s what’s in Mr Amaral’s book and the documentary is very distressing to adults. To a child it could be very damaging.”

Asked how she felt after reading the book, she said: “I was devastated. It made me feel quite desperate because of the injustice I felt towards my daughter and our family as a whole.

“It was very painful to read and I felt sad for Madeleine. I also felt anxious and fearful because of the damage I felt it was doing in Portugal.”

During a private hearing yesterday, Judge Maria Emilia Melo e Castro ruled in favour of the McCanns by acknowledging the hurt the book had caused them.

She also concluded Mr Amaral’s book had reproduced extracts from police files in apparent breach of judicial secrecy.

But she also is also believed to have dismissed a claim by the McCanns that the book effectively halted new police inquiries into what happened to their little girl.

Yesterday’s hearing, attended by lawyers for the McCanns and Mr Amaral, is the latest stage in the long running-legal saga which began in October 2013.

It took place to discuss which facts had been proven in the case.

No date has yet been set for a full judgment but the McCanns, from Rothley, Leicestershire, hope it will be next month.

Inquiries by Portuguese police and Scotland Yard detectives into the truth about Madeleine’s disappearance are continuing.

http://theportugalnews.com/news/mccanns-get-favourable-ruling-over-ex-cop-amaral/33746?

Court rules McCanns suffered due to book by ex-cop Amaral
IN NEWS · 22-01-2015 08:40:00

A Lisbon Court last night ruled that of the parents of missing British toddler Madeleine McCann had suffered as a result of the publication of a book by former Portuguese police detective Gonçalo Amaral in an ongoing libel suit.

Kate and Gerry McCann instituted legal proceedings in 2010, seeking damages of one million pounds against Amaral who oversaw the first six months of the investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann.

During yesterday’s ruling, which the McCanns did not attend, Judge Emília Melo e Castro revealed that emotional damage had been caused by Amaral’s book, The Truth of the Lie.

A source close to case told Lusa News Agency afterwards that " it was proven that damage was caused as direct result by the book's publication", who also confirmed that the judge ruled that the book "contains information from the actual case", which would constitute a breach of Portugal’s strict secrecy laws.  

However, the judge also found that "it had not been proven that Kate and Gerry McCann were destroyed from a moral, social and ethical point of view", but said that the publication of the book by Amaral resulted in the couple "feeling anger, despair, anxious, worried and suffered sleepless nights and experienced a lack of appetite."

Newspaper reports have also since stated the couple's reputation had already been damaged prior to the book's release, which might be seen as factor which could substantially reduce and pay-outs should the court decide money should change hands.

A final ruling is expected to take at least 30 days before being read out.[/b]

 Juíza deu como provado que o livro do ex-inspetor da Polícia Judiciária causou danos aos pais de Madeleine McCann

The court today ruled that the book of former Inspector of Judicial Police (PJ) Gonçalo Amaral, entitled "Maddie: The Truth of the Lie", caused damage to the parents of Madeleine McCann,

   Tribunal diz que não foi o livro de Gonçalo Amaral que “destruiu” pais de Maddie

The court ruled that the book of Goncalo Amaral did not destroy Maddies parents.  

Casal McCann moveu uma acção cível contra o ex-inspector por difamação e danos causados pela publicação do livro.

"For defamation and damages"

Amaral cannot sue the McCanns as they have spoken about him very little about him outside a court room and what they have said is either proven fact or pure opinion. He cannot sue them for sueing him.

I think the McCanns will win most of this case but will not receive such large damages. The judge ruled that amaral didn't harm the search so that decreases the award. So it will just be for the emotional damage, and may just be for them not the twins and very unlikely will Madeleine be awarded anything. If the judge is correct that he didn't hurt the search then at least that is something.

The most damaging part for amaral IMO is the fact the judge found he broke judicial secrecy. This means that he can't try to claim that his right to free speech overrides the emotional hurt to the McCann's as it is established he had no right to break judicial secrecy. So his one and only defence to the damage has gone. More importantly it could lead to prosecution which would also raise the possibility of prison. What's more if he is found to have broken the law during his suspended sentrance then it could have implications for that too.

Brietta on Today at 08:34:30 PM
Authors and publishers are in the business of making money and if it had been written in a different way UK publishers would have been in a bidding war to get their hands on it.

I think Dr Amaral could not see the wood for the trees, he knew there was money to be made short term because a very lucrative book had been written by the coordinator of Joana Cipriano's case.

For some reason I think it was also 'pay back' time for the Drs McCann who disgracefully did not agree with his theory to the extent of vociferously protesting their innocence.

Transference of blame to the McCanns for his spats with debt, the law and the PJ pre-dated Madeleine McCann's birth and therefore make little sense.

As coordinator of one of the hottest criminal cases in history he had the goose that was capable of laying baskets of golden eggs for him. He might have had the respect he so longs for instead of waiting for the judge to publish a verdict which I think may well cost him dear.

All he had to do was write a proper account of his part in Madeleine's case, certainly with a different title and certainly one which actually told the truth.

I don't think he will ever write another best seller for the simple reason I think his credibility has taken a severe knock, worldwide but perhaps of importance to him in Portugal.
Just watching the video of the audience and the anchors in his TV interview was instructive ... and I think it might prove another miscalculation on his part depending on the judge's take if she sees it, and I am sure she will.

Montclair on January 26, 2015, 09:56:13 PM
Some of you do not understand that Gonçalo Amaral did not write the book to make money. As he has often said, he wrote it not only for his honour but for the honour of the investigation, his colleagues and the institution of the PJ. Furthermore, neither he nor the publisher thought that the book would be a best seller. I do realise that this concept is difficult for some to comprehend, since in the eyes of some posters here that he is evil incarnate.

That's a good 'un.  

It may work with the Amaral cult, but the rest of us know Amaral was told to resign or be sacked and lose his pension.

The rest of us know Amaral's 'colleagues' boycotted his leaving party, so great was their dislike of him.

The rest of us know all about the PJ stopping part of his pension, and his Old Boy perks, because both he and that thug Cristovao brought the PJ into disrepute.
'Didn't write it to make money'? Pull the other one, it's got bells on  

McCanns vs Amaral verdict nearing
http://algarvedailynews.com/news/4705-mccanns-vs-amaral-verdict-nearing

The verdict in Kate and Gerry McCann’s civil action against the former lead detective Gonçalo Amaral may come sooner than expected because of a recent behind-the-scenes development in the long-drawn-out case.

The question of whether or not Kate and Gerry McCann are legally entitled to represent their daughter Madeleine in their claim for damages has taken a significant step closer to being resolved, according to a source close to the process.

Madeleine was made a ward of court in the UK in April 2008. In January last year, Amaral argued in Lisbon’s Palace of Justice that because Madeleine was still a ward of court the McCanns did not have the legal right to represent her in their Lisbon lawsuit against him and three other parties.

The Lisbon judge, Emília Melo e Castro, gave Madeleine’s parents the opportunity to obtain appropriate documentation about the ward of court matter from the British High Court.

The McCanns had a 30-day set period in which to present this. They did so without delay and much earlier than expected. The documentation was presented to the Lisbon court through the couple’s lawyers on 23 January. None of the defence lawyers has or is expected to raise any objections.

So it is now up to the Lisbon judge to decide the relatively straightforward matter of whether the documentation attests to the McCanns’ right to represent Madeleine. When this is settled, the trial is expected to move towards its last formal exchanges and then, finally, sooner than most people had anticipated, perhaps next month, a verdict.

The McCanns are seeking €1.2 million in damages for the severe distress they say has been caused to them by Amaral’s book, A Verdade da Mentira (‘The Truth of the Lie’), and a subsequent documentary.

The judge’s recent summary of the main points in the case that had been proved or not proved left Amaral and his supporters optimistic about the eventual outcome.

Amaral said this week that he was hoping for an acquittal and the lifting of financial difficulties that have burdened him since the McCanns decided to sue five years ago.

Re: Libel trial day 14 - Statement of facts proved/not proved issued to lawyers.
« Reply #726 on: Today at 11:09:05 AM »
Quote from: Faithlilly on February 09, 2015, 11:36:10 AM
Carana Anne Guedes has asked me to tell you that she reported no matéria de prova because none was publicly divulged.

MrsWaspie ‏@MrsWaspie  Mar 5
Book ban overturned though msm won't tell you that! Read it here free - …goncaloa*****1 … #mccann #WorldBookDay

Felicity BAUMFLOUGH
‏@Baumflough
@MrsWaspie Overturned?!?!?!?!? smile
Sheffield, England

12:28 pm - 5 Mar 2015
MrsWaspie ‏@MrsWaspie  14h14 hours ago
@Baumflough - amaral won appeal pic.twitter.com/c2UXjd5kQY

Felicity BAUMFLOUGH ‏@Baumflough  4h4 hours ago
@MrsWaspie Wow!!! And it MUST be damning because they've made sure MSM aren't reporting! YEY!!! Go #Amaral!!!

Hate to rain on the hater parade, but that was in 2010. FIVE YEARS AGO.

 

One of these days, haters will learn to read.

Online G-Unit

Re: Is there any transparency with the Gonçalo Amaral fund?
« Reply #49 on: Today at 07:15:26 PM »
Details of Goncalo Amaral's defence fund here;

xxxxxxxhttp://pjga.blogspot.co.uk/search?updated-min=2009-01-01T00:00:00Z&updated-max=2010-01-01T00:00:00Z&max-results=32

Re: McCanns vs Amaral verdict nearing.
Post HelenMeg Today a
I dont know the answers to those questions.

It has now been over 43 days since the last court session re this case.
The verdict may well have been sent out by letter by now. I predict Amaral will take 2 or 3 days or more to sit on it and digest before announcing things and thanking his supporters etc etc .
I cant see the Mc Canns making a song and dance of it. They will be discussing their next move or being advised what to do although most 'supporteres / advisers' will have now left them to fend for themselves.

Of course these thoughts are just my opinion and may well be completely wrong. It seems funny to think that after all the publicity the claim will end with a couple of letters quietly falling through letter boxes.

Princess Princess ‏@Princessmc2014 Mar 8
Any day now Sir Goncalo Amaral You will receive the #justice and respect you rightly deserve A True Gentleman #mccann

plebgate wrote:
This high level meeting could be because Rocky has won the libel case and will be free to comment without fear of being sued again.

By the way, there was a rumour on twitter that David and Fiona Payne are moving to New Zealand. Has it been mentioned on here? I have seen something myself on FB which suggests they are thinking of it, but it's gone now.

UPDATE (but of little significance to change anything)
We have learned from the court in Lisbon that a request was filed on the 12th of March by one of the parties, therefore delaying the start of the 30-day period that is indicated by Portuguese law for the judge to issue a verdict.
This period will now start counting from the end of this week/the start of next week. Please keep in mind that the 30-day time frame is merely indicative. Also please keep in mind that filing a last-minute request does not necessarily have a tactical significance. We will keep you updated as possible.

Daft ‏@DaftNelly 2h2 hours ago
@DwarfInBox @AdirenM Hopefully if Amaral exonerated he may counter sue the #McCann s

Daft ‏@DaftNelly 7m7 minutes ago
@anotherviv @AnnaEsse @justice4maddie @DwarfInBox @AdirenM So thousands of public donations spent By #McCann as they had no savings ?