Portuguese judicial secrecy law and its impact on the Madeleine case.

[ShiningInLuz]

In the past 5 years I have only been in the Algarve for less than a fortnight total but I have been there twice!

BTW, the little brown camper van that was noticed in Figueira before Joana vanished, also vanished and was found dumped in Praia de Luz.


Of course everyone was aware of what happened in the Joana Cipriano case .... and how her mother was tortured to near blindness.

Nope to part I have bolded.  I had never heard of it until posters repeatedly dragged it onto this forum rather than the JC forum.

And believe it or not, not everyone has heard of the Madeleine McCann case.

We have holidayed in Portugal many a time, both before and after Madeleine's disappearance, but until we actually moved here, I could not have told you where Luz (Lagos) or Luz (Tavira) are.  And since I have no interest in the Cipriano case, I don't know where Figueira is.

[jassi]

He must have had a time machine then ... the article states ...

He told the McCanns shortly after the abduction that there had been "several cases of men getting into bed with children". When police made public their files on the case in the summer of 2008, Mrs McCann discovered five cases of British children being sexually abused in their beds while on holiday and while their parents slept in another room.

Irrespective of what you say, the date of the article state 2011.

[Brietta]

Irrespective of what you say, the date of the article state 2011.

Quite ... it refers to events she was informed about in 2007 to which, under secrecy of justice law Kate could not make reference.

[ShiningInLuz]

The article in the SUN was dated the 8th Sept and the Mccanns were made arguidos on the 7th Sept.

Are you saying that the SUN managed to find Leandro, interview him, and then write the piece and publish in less thann 12 hours?

I think The Mccanns knew about what had happened to Leonor in advance of being made arquidos.

SIL, why are you lowering yourself to the cheap tactics of insinuating (for any reader who didn't have the means to check) that probably The Mccanns didn't know about what happened in the Cipriano case?    You must surely have checked the dates and realised the timings ruled in the fact that The Mccanns would know.

Please refrain from using phrases like 'lowering yourself' and 'cheap tactics of insinuating'.   

I have no way of knowing for certain whether, at the time Kate was made an arguida, she knew or did not know about the Cipriano case.

On balance of evidence, probably not.  She did not write of being thus informed at the time, or who allegedly informed her.

If I get something better than might, ought, could, should, obviously, and similar flannelling I'll be happy to accept.  Until then, it remains speculation.

[Brietta]

Article 86 of the Portuguese Criminal Procedure Code states that all parties to the investigation are bound by a duty of secrecy. This duty of secrecy applies to all those connected to the investigation and to all those who have obtained knowledge of the investigation from the commencement of the investigation to the moment that the proceedings become public.Traditionally, the rule of Secrecy of Justice aims to guarantee the effectiveness of a criminal inquiry and a fair investigation and trial.More recently, this rule has been defended on the basis of the rights to privacy, to a good name and reputation of victims, defendants or other parties involved in criminal proceedings, and also on the basis of the presumption of innocence.
http://miscarriageofjustice.co/index.php?topic=5795.0

According to the above the McCann's rights to the protection afforded under the Portuguese constitution and therefore by law were being trampled upon each and every time 'a source close to the investigation' deigned to leak information to the Portuguese press.

Why was that allowed?

[jassi]

Leaks are not 'allowed', they just happen. Ask the British government   

[ShiningInLuz]

Encarnacao, who was Amaral's superior in the Madeleine case, also oversaw the Joana case. He worked closely with UK police officers from the get-go. Do you think he would have withheld details of another unsolved case from a few years before?

Withheld them from whom?

From the Leicestershire Police?  Who knows?  On balance, probably.

From the McCanns?  Definitely.

What would you expect him to say to the McCanns?  'We had another case like this 2 years ago quite close by.  Don't worry, the mother is in prison, after confessing'.

Please, why on Earth would Encarnação discuss this with either the LP or the McCanns?

[ShiningInLuz]

Actually ... it was in response to your request regarding Gerry McCann's blog and whether or not Joana Cipriano is mentioned there.

Please refrain from demanding cites if none given by me appear destined ever to meet with your approval.  Thank you.

Let me see.

No cite that the McCanns knew of the Cipriano case, when made arguidos.

No cite that Gerry McCann wrote of the Cipriano case in his blog.

Perhaps you would be good enough in future to make clear when you are merely stating your opinion, as per forum protocols.  Much faster that way.

TY 

[misty]

Withheld them from whom?

From the Leicestershire Police?  Who knows?  On balance, probably.

From the McCanns?  Definitely.

What would you expect him to say to the McCanns?  'We had another case like this 2 years ago quite close by.  Don't worry, the mother is in prison, after confessing'.

Please, why on Earth would Encarnação discuss this with either the LP or the McCanns?

It was all over the UK press by early June 2007.
http://newsoutlines.blogspot.co.uk/2010/01/media-treatment-of-portuguese-police.html

[Alice Purjorick]

Article 86 of the Portuguese Criminal Procedure Code states that all parties to the investigation are bound by a duty of secrecy. This duty of secrecy applies to all those connected to the investigation and to all those who have obtained knowledge of the investigation from the commencement of the investigation to the moment that the proceedings become public.Traditionally, the rule of Secrecy of Justice aims to guarantee the effectiveness of a criminal inquiry and a fair investigation and trial.More recently, this rule has been defended on the basis of the rights to privacy, to a good name and reputation of victims, defendants or other parties involved in criminal proceedings, and also on the basis of the presumption of innocence.
http://miscarriageofjustice.co/index.php?topic=5795.0

According to the above the McCann's rights to the protection afforded under the Portuguese constitution and therefore by law were being trampled upon each and every time 'a source close to the investigation' deigned to leak information to the Portuguese press.

Why was that allowed?

Later on the same article it sayeth:
"The PJ, with authorisation of the Criminal Investigation Judge (JIC), can provide information to the media.  In addition, provision is made in Article 86 of the Portuguese Criminal Procedure Code for the PJ to provide the press with summary reports regarding the ongoing investigation specifically in order to prevent crime.ProtectiveAlso, it is not unusual for the PJ to ask for information through the media in particular cases. However, each police investigation is unique and requires more or less secrecy to gather evidence and make arrests. This does no mean that the PJ is failing to release information to the public for the sake of it - it only means that some information must be gathered more discreetly than other information.Care must be taken that information which is released would not, for example, compromise an investigation by alerting perpetrators of the PJ’s intentions or potential course of action".

[misty]

Later on the same article it sayeth:
"The PJ, with authorisation of the Criminal Investigation Judge (JIC), can provide information to the media.  In addition, provision is made in Article 86 of the Portuguese Criminal Procedure Code for the PJ to provide the press with summary reports regarding the ongoing investigation specifically in order to prevent crime.ProtectiveAlso, it is not unusual for the PJ to ask for information through the media in particular cases. However, each police investigation is unique and requires more or less secrecy to gather evidence and make arrests. This does no mean that the PJ is failing to release information to the public for the sake of it - it only means that some information must be gathered more discreetly than other information.Care must be taken that information which is released would not, for example, compromise an investigation by alerting perpetrators of the PJ’s intentions or potential course of action".

There's a mission for posters. Find a PJ leak to the press in this case which prevented crime, requested information or didn't alert a potential perp to the direction the PJ were heading?

[Brietta]

Later on the same article it sayeth:
"The PJ, with authorisation of the Criminal Investigation Judge (JIC), can provide information to the media.  In addition, provision is made in Article 86 of the Portuguese Criminal Procedure Code for the PJ to provide the press with summary reports regarding the ongoing investigation specifically in order to prevent crime.ProtectiveAlso, it is not unusual for the PJ to ask for information through the media in particular cases. However, each police investigation is unique and requires more or less secrecy to gather evidence and make arrests. This does no mean that the PJ is failing to release information to the public for the sake of it - it only means that some information must be gathered more discreetly than other information.Care must be taken that information which is released would not, for example, compromise an investigation by alerting perpetrators of the PJ’s intentions or potential course of action".

Verily this was done when Amaral requested permission to release Madeleine's photograph into the public domain.

If police leaking lies to the press about individuals involved in an investigation doesn't break Portuguese law and drive a coach and horses through the rights of those traduced, what does it do?

Did such conduct improve Madeleine's chance of being found?

[jassi]

Verily this was done when Amaral requested permission to release Madeleine's photograph into the public domain.

If police leaking lies to the press about individuals involved in an investigation doesn't break Portuguese law and drive a coach and horses through the rights of those traduced, what does it do?

Did such conduct improve Madeleine's chance of being found?

I don't suppose the media gave that a second's thought.

[Brietta]

I don't suppose the media gave that a second's thought.

The media did their job and in the absence of legitimate information emanating from the investigation relied on that attributed in many instances to 'a source ... '   Nor were they ever asked to show restraint by anyone in authority in Portugal ... unless you can indicate the contrary.

On the other hand if someone within the investigation was leaking selective and pejorative information he or she was not doing their job;  they were acting in blatant defiance of the law they were supposed to be upholding and protecting.

[stephen25000]

Posters are reminded not to post libellous content and not to post opinion as fact.


It will be removed.