WILLIAM MATTHEWS PLAINTIFF

Defamation law that ignores truth ruled unconstitutional
Peter Walsh - The Telegram (St. John's, NFLD)
Tuesday, May 6

The Supreme Court of Newfoundland has ruled a law that could send
someone to prison for defamation is unconstitutional.

Justice Lois Hoegg made the decision Friday. Her ruling also struck
down a criminal case by Crown prosecutors against Byron Prior of Grand
Bank.

Prior claims that in 1966, a justice official in the province raped
and impregnated one of his relatives. Crown attorneys say Prior wore
placards and distributed flyers which published the allegations.

The Royal Newfoundland Constabulary interviewed Prior's relative in
2004 and in 2007, but the alleged victim denied she had been sexually
assaulted or that she even knew the person Prior said had attacked
her.

Crown prosecutors tried to convict Prior of defamation under Section
301 of the Criminal Code, which says "everyone who publishes a
defamatory libel is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to
imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years."

The problem is, Hoegg said, the Crown couldn't prove that Prior was
knowingly spreading lies.

"I find that it is not justified, in our free and democratic society,
for the Crown to use the heavy hammer of the criminal law against a
subject for publishing defamatory libel when the Crown is not able to
show that the subject knows that his statements are false.

"The expression of truthful, unpopular or even false statements
deserve protection unless expressed in a violent manner," wrote Hoegg.

Hoegg said if the Crown could prove Prior knowingly published
defamatory libel, it would have charged him under a different section
of the criminal code that says "everyone who publishes a defamatory
libel that he knows is false is guilty of an indictable offence and
liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years."

That law has withheld court challenges. Section 301 - the law which
does not mention the matter of truth - has been struck down as
unconstitutional by three other superior courts in Canada.

"The sections catch different types of offender. To me, it naturally
follows that their purpose or objectives must be different," wrote
Hoegg. "I then determined that the objective (of Section 301) was not
so pressing and important as to override freedom of expression. The
section is offensive to modern day notions of justice."

The decision only applies to criminal applications of defamation law.
Hoegg said Prior could possibly be sued in civil court over his
allegations.

Three years ago, a federal politician filed a statement of claim in
the Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador to have a website that
contained allegations about him by Prior removed. In the statement,
the politician said a website posted by Prior accuses him and other
prominent Newfoundlanders of wrongdoing.

A website containing the allegations is still active ( see 1). Prior
claims to be a victim of physical and sexual abuse.

2005 01 T 0010

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF NEWFOUNDLAND AND LABRADOR
TRIAL DIVISION
BETWEEN:

WILLIAM MATTHEWS PLAINTIFF
AND:
BYRON PRIOR DEFENDANT