At a recent hearing, the reporter was able to explain that she had only done her duty to inform the people of St. Martin as she considers it her professional mission.
That is exactly what her lawyer, Maitre (Me) Jan-Marc Ferly, developed before the Court, explaining that the sources of the information was truthful and therefore reliable, that the reporter did not violate the presumption of innocence, and that her good will and the seriousness of her work could not be questioned.
In a previous statement, Me Jan-Marc Ferly took the opportunity to emphasize a breach in the legal procedure, confirming that the summons did not spell out the complaint brought against the SMN News reporter therefore it was null and void.
The lawyer representing the plaintiff considered this argument "pitiful". However, such was not the position of the Court, who declared invalid the summons drawn up by this lawyer for his colleague and client and acquitted the SMN News reporter in its final decision.
The moral of this verdict is as follows: SMN NEWS will continue to do its work so that the truthful information and democracy prevails, and especially will not change its lawyer. As a matter of fact, immediately after the Bibi Hodge-Shaw case, Me Jan-Marc FERLY (www.cabinet-ferly.com) was automatically assigned to defend a homeless person who had secured shelter in the gardens of the Prefecture. Maitre Ferly managed to obtain the homeless man release that same day.
