Senior Counsel Anthony Astaphan says a judgment which ordered local talk show host Lennox Linton to pay a fine of $50, 000 for defamation against chartered accountant Keiron Pinard-Byrne should be used as an example by media practitioners on the island.
Astaphan, who formed part of the legal team representing Pinard-Byrne, said the judgment reflects the difference between rumors over the radio and the ability to prove a case in the court of law.
“The judge felt that there was extraordinary recklessness and arrogance on the part of Mr. Linton, that he was insisting that he had done investigative work in a matter for which he was not qualified…” he said.
Astaphan said the issue should not just only be about Linton.
According to Astaphan “the judge made in clear that there seem to be a very ugly practice in Dominica about media practitioners throwing out all sorts of allegations and people believing that because it’s on the radio it’s the truth”.
Astaphan said this is a slap in the face for Linton but should also serve as a lesson for media practitioners.
YOUR SATURDAY MUST REACH YOU THAT TONY THERE. JUST WAIT.
viglante time is now
there is a gang of people running Dominican mafias but i not afraid of them
Hold on Lennox, John the Baptiste too was beheaded, Christ nailed to the cross, Martin Luther was stabbed by a black woman who thought his resistance would make the white man harder on us, Paul was executed too for Christ sake, Mandella 28 years in prison, for talking truth.and black people ask yourself, how long shall they kill our prophets while we stand around and look? but maybe not too long now, the turn around has begun, see the Arab countries? see the begining of the end of Dictators, corrupt leaders? educated thieves? dont look now time is running out for evil people. Stay tuned.
I guess its ok to just make statements on Radio beaucse you dont like a person. Now when your statement is tested in a Civil Court and you cannot present the evidence you claimed that you had, and you are made to pay for your slackness its Tony’s Fault? Its one thing to say something because you thnik it will help your story and your party but its another thing to present that evidence in a Court of Law where there is NO PLACE FOR BEFF BUT EVIDENCE. LEARN OR BURN.
Tony Astaphan says he is proud of Hazel Johnson – what happen he thinks she needs heis commendations to make her a good lawyer. Pleaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaase !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! He vex he not in the limelight , I’m sure he would love to take the credit.
It iain’t over ’til the fat lady sings. As we can see, there isn’t much justice in the courts these days.
DOMINICA NEWS ONLINE. MANAGEMENT AND STAFF.
IT’S BECAUSE OF YOU AND OTHER ONE-SIDED MEDIA’S WHY LINTON AND OTHERS ARE GETTING AWAY WITH ALL THAT GARBAGE THAT THEY SPEW ON THE AIR ON A DAILY BASIS. YOU ASK FOR COMMENT ON ALL TOPICS THAT YOU PRINT. YET WHEN YOU RECEIVE THEM AND HAS TO BE POSTED YOU ERASE THOSE THAT EFFECT THE PEOPLE YOU WANT TO PROTECT SIMPLE BECAUSE OF YOUR BIASNESS.I POSTED (1) ONE COMMENTS PERTAINING TO THE JUDGES DECISION ON THE FINE, WHICH YOU DID NOT POST. I THEN COMMENTED (1) ONE ON ASTAPHAN’S COMMENTS WHICH AGAIN DID NOT POST. I KNOW THAT YOU WILL NOT POST THIS ONE FOR YOU DO NOT WANT YOUR READERS TO KNOW HOW ONE-SIDED AND BIAS YOU ARE.
WHY SHOULD YOU TREAT LINTON LIKE THE UNTOUCHABLE WHERE AS YOU KNOW WHAT HE IS DOING IS WRONG.
RSVP..
zeh zeh
It matters not whether I WAS part of the legal team. for the record I was initially and for many years but was removed or fired by Mr, Pinard Byrne as is his right. The reasons are not relevant but it had nothing to do with money. The important fact though is not me at all, but the significance of the judgment. It is an important judgment and exposes the media fraud taking place every single day by Linton and others whose arrogance destroy the fundamental distinction between fact and fiction. Mr. KPB’s Attorney on record Mrs Hazel Johnson needs to be publicly commended for her sterling work. i am very proud of her! And Mr. KPB needs to be complimented for his pure determination to seek justice and truth to power!
If the Editor wants a copy of the judgment to post the full contents I will forward to him or her.
Admin: Please forward to [email protected]. Thanks.
Thank you sir, keep up the good work, God bless you.
Tony must be laughing at you simple minded gullible people when he is in his crystal palace looking down at those wavet and cacadoe! You people have claimed and owned the names and the disrespect that Tony has dished out to you, and guess what YOU RIGHTLY DESERVE IT. You wanna bees can never be in Tony’s circle no matter how much you faltter him.
Well it’s not Tony’s fault you belong nowhere.Sorry if you have no circle or square to be in.Tony’s palace has nothing to do with u,get your palace.You sound demented.
Yes admin please post the full judgment so we can all see. Tony you know that this judgment is legally flawed but we need the entire document to point out where we think it is. We may not be lawyers but law is not devoid of all common sense. Therefore as far as the words complained of are concerned, I as a lay person, question this judgment. You of all persons should know that there is a separation of law and opinion i.e, the Mens Rea and Obiter of a ruling, so to help with our analysis if DNO does publish it, can you distinguish the two parts of that decision. I hope this is not asking too much of you. We understand that Lennox may not have given us the full facts as he only read out what in my opinion and yours too I’m sure, the passing comment (obiter dicta) of the judgment.
Admin: we are trying to get the full judgement to post but so far we haven’t received it. As soon as we get it we will post.
Tony is a brilliant Attorney at Law and he does not have to win every case to prove tha. His record CANNOT be touched by many in the caribbean. You do not have to like him but he is worth his salt much more than the Lenoox Eddie etc Circus that you people support. In a Court of Law does not have space for Rumors thats where we separate the men from the Boys and the Boys from the Toys, GUESS where Lennox, Eddie, Ron and Spaggs fit in. Tony we got your back all the time bro.
Jesus spoke Truth to power..He was crucified. Bala, Congo Ray, & Farcel spoke Truth to Power
under the wretched System of Slavery..They were hunted and killed. Malcolm X. Martin Luther King,
spoke Truth to Power..They were jailed and assasinated. Mandela was jailed for over 25 years.
Lennox and other Patriotic Dominicans must recognize that the evil doers WILL put up a fight.
just see what’s going on in Libya today. Nasio sang “The truth will reveal”. They can kill the messanger but not the message. Lennox keep on fight my brother..The Spirit of the MAROONS
ar with you. I support you.
Lennox must realize that he cannot just go on the radio and continuously say things about people with no proof and try to convince us that he knows it all. He has done some good work but he is spoiling his efforts by overdoing his accusations and the assasination of too many peoples character and now he sounds like he has too much hate in his heart.
The court does not act on hearsay or emails as these are not legally acceptable and he must learn to accept his errors…the quicker he does that the better for him
The evil that men do lives with them,what one sow so does he reap,,,well well,Lennox gone past investigative journalist starndard reporting to obsession with implicating so many people up to this time in so many issues,was like a bulldog with no leash so, hope he learn to be a real journalist and not be a party political fanatic,,,,Has anyone heard Lennox mention or commend any positive aspect of Dominican life??,sole focus is on Government issues and personalities,……there must be resposibility in freedom of expression,,How is that no other jounalist except those from Q-95 has been sued,,,yet all others produce news etc,,,,,Lesson for Mr ego ,most smartest LL,TAKE A SERIOUS DOSE OF HUMILITY AND come again
alas, allu help him pay. hahaha, at least give the man a quart nuh. Good for his skin!!
long time they should make him pay for his big mouth. since on Kiri f m so u a ll to stupid Dominican
Tony has an agenda, BUT that kite he is flying is about to get caught up in the high tension wires. The justice system has become a one sided game played by one set of people. However that is for a time Dominicans had enough..
lenox linton and uwp… yall failed the country so go quietly… Dominica needs new reprensentation. honest, transparent and good.
So if Tony was part of Byrne legal team how comes Byrne doh mention his name in thanking his solicitors?
Here is what Byrne wrote in his press statement published by DNO.
“I thank my solicitors, DeFreitas, DeFreitas & Johnson for their seven long years of due process of my claims and Hazel Johnson for her fearless cross-examinations. Throughout The Layou Saga’s twenty years, I also had the privilege of working with other distinguished legal counsel from the UK, Boston and Beijing. I thank all of them for their professionalism and kind understanding of The Layou Project’s travails on a road less travelled.”
Yes Tony you believe you own Dominica, but this is just for a time. I hope when Dominicans take back their country, you guys will stay around to pay for what you have done to the country.
Don’t worry about lennox his bread is butter and befor you all rejoying over judge that under white cocach tony and Skerrit wait tell we appel to know who will have the better laugh and tony so happy now don’t worry lennox is fine and as bob marley say who laugh last shall laugh the best thats why we not worry with them lazy hungry labourite them go beg and sing for your surpa on Roseau street lennox in his own ome eating and drinking well and his bill will pay for sure but again which bill i would like to know
now how can lennox bread be buttered when money has to leave his pocket and is ppl he has to beg for it? Dont u think lennox in his arrogance all the time on his talk shows has been laughing first? instigating malice and twisting people s words to his n opposing liking? e.g. the famous twist of pm skerrit words reaasuring his people that there is nothing in the law or constitution that prevents him from being nominated………… if only i didnt hear in what context this was used for myself i would have lost confidence in skerrit but i must say put lennox in the pm shoes he would surpass skerrit a million times with lies and arrogance! so i guess lennox had enough laughing n whistling on the media
where is my response?
According to Astaphan “the judge made in clear that there seem to be a very ugly practice in Dominica about media practitioners throwing out all sorts of allegations and people believing that because it’s on the radio it’s the truth”
Reply: Not because a lawyer or a judge rules on it does it mean that what the judge or the lawyers say it truth or just.. I can give you an infinite list of crooked lawyers and judges. Some of them the mob litterally held in their back pockets! I don’t know but things are not right in Dominica on any level. The people have been conditioned to see black for white, white for black, wrong for right, good for evil and evil for good. The moral compass of Dominica needs serious re-adjustments.
Although I back the point that you made, Let me say you did not do justice to Astaphan’s statement. If you do listen to the radio and news sources, some of the people who throw all sorts of allegations are DEFINITELY throwing out all sorts of allegations. I do not know WHO and WHY they hiring some people to speak on the radio and calling themselves JOURNALISTS! you MUST do research and investigation into a matter and PROVE that the words that you used to form the sentence that your recite is in FACT TRUE!…. If you do know it is and you cannot give evidence of PROOF, HOW IN DE HELL can i say is true? You just called yourself an APE!
Nice name!! Good representation of the person it represents… I have every confidence in Lennox. I know that what he has been saying is the TRUTH, but it hurts a lot of people. They cannot handle it, so the tyranny and the terrorism continue. Terrorism does not always have to be physical violence, it can be psychological, PSY OPPS!! This is the order of the day in Dominica today. All of you people and hanging on a string that is just about to give way at anytime, all you have to hold on as tightly and long as you can because you have invested ALL that you have in this tragedy that Dominica has become… You cannot afford not to, but 100 years for thief, one day, just one minute for the guard… No lie can be sustained forever… The truth is set Lennox free. The justice whatever his name is is not the ultimate judge… There is one that is way more powerful than him who will judge him.
YNW, you should come back to Dominica and put things right
!
o lord …..now lennox is ur god who never lie? i listen to him . i love to. but he does lie sometimes..he needs to be more humble especially when he thinks he has facts n truth..
Amen ma Brotha! I’m confident that Lennox will prevail. The current state of Dominica’s judiciary is very troubling and should be of great concern to all civic minded citizens of the land.
But why is Tony all you want to blame he is not the Judge he has no control ovet the court Lenox is wrong and he must pay for his tongue he tired deform peoples caracter now he crying about white man and because he black and stupid they doing that to him boy is not them is you that bring that on your self dont blame people blame youir self you think is your mouth that bigger in Dominica and you are mr.know it all.well you well stick in your tail pay.You will stop bashing SKERRIt now wheare is the rest to help you, you alone in the calabouce . all others who continue to damage people’s name and caracter on the radio talk shows should pay i think what i hear Lenox saying on the radio Q95 this morning he should be taken in for contempt of court.Now his evil tongue will rest boy Lenox your Tongue must be happy now because it will rest from telling lies.. they should also trap the groovy bat to make them pay.all the time is lie those boys liying to the country much more to come.
all his information was concrete!haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa.
and when roosevelt skeritte loose his dual citizenship case in court it will be a slap in the face for all these in cabinet
Be patient
You to busy…what goes around comes around.
For your information he is: HON. ROOSEVELT SKERRIT
Thank you.
I am laughing my socks off , you all are so funny…this is all politics..Mother Dominica is crying, for her children are gone astray.
all that good let the court do it job that is lesson for the rest and it have more to come in the mean time we will drink that 50,000.
While I agree that the media practitioners must exercise complete control and prudence Tony Astaphan is not by any means credible enough to chastise people about truth and propaganda.
Yep. Pot calling kettle black huh!
Has the word “ATTORNEY” meant anything to you?
If yes, then you’re an educated fool for making such a statement.
if no, go and do some research and zip your trap before you speak because you just witnessed Linton getting some hot water!
He can chastise and has the credibility. You people seem to not know what this news is about. Just come and post comments and fume dirty carbon dioxide about nonsense.
The Moral of the story here is to PROVE and KNOW before you SPEAK!… Defamation is a serious crime!
Tony the atmosphere is right!! You should now filing your case on behalf of Skerrit right now, Why don’t you??? Tony there is nothing in the world that you and Skerrit and the rest of you ilk would like more than shutting up the press, I mean the people who are telling us what is happening in the country, but not this time, the ginny is out of the bottle, the information will come out one way or the other, not even China and Iran that can prevent information from coming out now. Do what all you want, the people will be informed of what is happening in their country.
U cannot read who ever you are? read the article good.. tell dem get their facts rite and they’ll not be sued in court hehe
you get your facts right idiot
look joke!
hmm
TONY ASSTAPHAN SHUT UP. Go and tell Skerritt the lessons he needs to learn and those you need to learn.
anonymous you are so blind,dumb and downright stupid.
last election will be the last time i vote the uwp . as a party on a hold these people are very ignorant instead of looking to work with the prime minister they look to bring him down what does that reflect on us as a country …mr linton broke the law so just shut up and take what what u get ..a las election done a long time now lets stop this nonsense….