By Prior Beharry
THE HIGH COURT has ordered Guardian Media Limited (GML) and one of its reporters to pay more than $300,000 to a People’s National Movement (PNM) MP for insinuating that he was a “wife beater.”
In a virtual ruling on Friday, Justice Frank Seepersad ordered GML and its journalist Renuka Singh to pay $250,000 in aggravated damages and $75,000 in exemplary damages.
The matter stems from an article published in October 8, 2018 that reported that the wife of Laventille East/Morvant MP Adrian Leonce was in hospital after suffering injuries to her face in an accident at her home after she slipped and fell.
The article also claimed that there were rumours that Leonce was responsible for the injuries to his wife Karen-Lee Bethelmy-Leonce.
The first five paragraphs of the article stated:
Member of Parliament for Laventille East/Movant Adrian Leonce says his wife who suffered serious injuries to her face after falling at home is recovering after three “extensive surgeries”.
Two weeks ago, Leonce posted a statement on social media asking for prayers for his wife who was in a “terrible accident”.
There have been very little updates on her condition since then except for calls from staff at Mt Hope Medical Complex that Leonce’s wife did not show any injuries associated with a car accident as it was only her face that was damaged.
In fact, the injuries were so severe that staff at Mt Hope said she received three facial reconstruction surgeries.
In an interview on Saturday and Whatsapp exchanges over the weekend, Leonce said it was not the first time that he heard rumours that he was violent towards his wife. He described the persistent rumours as “mischief”.
Justice Seepersad said while Singh has made contact with Leonce before the publication of the article and he gave an explanation of the injuries the rumours were published.
He said, “If, the First Claimant (Leonce) had committed an act of domestic violence, it is logical to expect that right-thinking members of a society which values its women, would not say that ‘the Second Claimant (Bethelmy-Leonce) didn’t choose her man wisely’ but they would condemn the acts of violence and demand that the perpetrator be held to account. It is therefore obvious that a story which suggested that a Government Minister was possibly guilty of domestic violence was a ‘news item’ which would sell like ‘hot hops’ and generate increased readership and revenue.”
Justice Seepersad said, “Gossip ought not to be the foundation upon which news is premised.
“Sadly and notwithstanding the billions spent on education, this society’s appetite for salacious stories is significant and it is fuelled, unabated, by the media.
“In an era where occurrences and developments reach a wide audience almost instantly via social media platforms, traditional media houses should understand that their continued relevance will depend on their ability to publish verified, reliable and accurate information.”
