After three years of procedure, a four-hour long debate, which was held last November, the parties had to wait another four hours to hear the court decision, on January 14. The judge calls Jean-Yves Viollier and Dominique Lapierre to the stand. In one go and without giving any further details about her decision, she announced: “The court acquits you both. There is no defamation constituted. »
“We were visionaries”
During the hearing on November 19, Jean-Yves Viollier defended himself: “We were visionaries, not defamators. Everything we have written is entirely true and the result of investigations. » The five articles, published between February and April 2021, denounced illegal taking of interests by the mayor, personal enrichment following a capital gain and favoritism for the hiring of his daughter.
Pierre Mallet said he regretted “that these people, who present themselves as whistleblowers, wrote dozens of articles against my family, dragged my daughter through the mud. » His lawyer supported: “For me, we are in a case where personal animosity shows very clearly everywhere. This is the outcome of four years of fighting against Pierre Mallet. » For the damage, the mayor claimed 63,000 euros. He won't touch them.
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