Aussie SAS Guy Loses Defamation Case on War Crimes

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Aussie SAS Guy Loses Defamation Case on War Crimes

Postby ROB » Fri Jun 02, 2023 12:03 am

The papers called him a murderer and bully.

He sued.

The courts backed the papers.

Biggest own goal of all time?

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Australia’s most decorated soldier loses multiple defamation claims against media who accused him of war crimes

Brisbane, Australia
CNN

Australia’s most decorated soldier lost a multi-million dollar defamation case against three newspapers who accused him of committing war crimes in Afghanistan – including the murder of unarmed prisoners – as a judge ruled their reports met the standards of truth.

The ruling, delivered by Federal Court Justice Anthony Besanko on Thursday, brings a dramatic end to a long-running trial and delivers another blow to the reputation of the nation’s military, already damaged by revelations that emerged during 100 days of testimony.

Besanko found Thursday that The Age, The Sydney Morning Herald, and The Canberra Times established substantial truth in a number of claims about Ben Roberts-Smith, but not all of them. In some cases, he found the papers established contextual truth, which is also a defense under Australia’s Defamation Act. In others, he found that the papers had not established the truth.

In the most damning findings, Besanko said the papers had shown there was substantial truth to the allegation that Roberts-Smith, a former special forces soldier, murdered an unarmed Afghan civilian by kicking him off a cliff and ordering troops under his command to shoot him.

Besanko also found there was substantial truth to claims that Roberts-Smith shot dead a man with a prosthetic leg in Afghanistan with a machine gun, then took the prosthetic leg back to Australia and encouraged his soldiers to use it as a drinking vessel.

Chief of the Australian Defence Force Gen. Angus Campbell delivers the findings from the Inspector-General of the Australian Defence Force Afghanistan Inquiry, in Canberra, Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. A shocking report into war crimes by elite Australian troops has found evidence that 25 soldiers unlawfully killed 39 Afghan prisoners, farmers and civilians. (Mick Tsikas/Pool Photo via AP)
Elite Australian troops unlawfully killed 39 Afghan civilians amid a culture of 'blood lust,' report alleges
The finding of truth for the most serious allegations batters the already damaged reputation of Roberts-Smith, who was awarded Australia’s highest medal for gallantry, the Victoria Cross, and was feted as a hero for his bravery and leadership.

His honors extended beyond the battlefield – in 2013 he was named “Father of the Year,” posing for photos with his young family.

But that reputation began to fall apart after two veteran reporters investigated allegations that he and his SAS units committed war crimes while in Afghanistan.

The Age, The Sydney Morning Herald, and The Canberra Times had relied on a truth defense for a series of articles published in 2018 that painted the elite soldier as a bully and murderer who lied to protect his reputation.

The decision in favor of the papers is being celebrated by supporters of press freedom, who say it will harden the resolve of media companies to pursue high-cost investigative cases in a country with tough defamation laws.

Outside court, Nine’s managing director of publishing James Chessell said the ruling was a vindication of the journalists and newsrooms who support public interest journalism.

“Most importantly, it is a vindication for the brave soldiers of the SAS who served their country with distinction, and then had the courage to speak the truth about what happened in Afghanistan,” Chessell said.

The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald are published by Nine, a CNN affiliate. The Canberra Times published the same stories but has since changed ownership.

Peter Bartlett, a partner at law firm MinterEllison, who represented that papers and the journalists, said the result was a validation of the truth defense.

“Never has Australia seen a media defendant face such challenges from a plaintiff and his funders. This is an enormous and epic win for freedom of speech and the right for the public to know,” he said in a statement.

Absent from court
Roberts-Smith, a former SAS soldier, wasn’t in court to hear the verdict. The day before the ruling, local media published photos of him beside a pool in Bali, Indonesia.

Despite his absence, a large media contingent gathered at the Federal Court in Sydney to hear the verdict, which was broadcast from the court and aired live on national television.

The journalists behind the stories – Nick McKenzie and Chris Masters – are multi award-winning investigative reporters known for their rigorous attention to detail. After the ruling, McKenzie tweeted one word: “Justice.”

Journalists Chris Masters (L) and Nick McKenzie (R) talk to the media outside the Federal Court of Australia in Sydney on June 1, 2023. Ben Roberts-Smith, one of Australia's most decorated soldiers, lost a landmark defamation case against major newspapers on June 1 after a bruising trial that saw accusations of murder, domestic violence, witness intimidation and war crimes.
Journalists Chris Masters (L) and Nick McKenzie (R) talk to the media outside the Federal Court of Australia in Sydney on June 1, 2023. Ben Roberts-Smith, one of Australia's most decorated soldiers, lost a landmark defamation case against major newspapers on June 1 after a bruising trial that saw accusations of murder, domestic violence, witness intimidation and war crimes.
Saeed Khan/AFP/Getty Images
Outside the court, Masters and McKenzie paid tribute to the people who came forward to testify against Roberts-Smith. They included Afghan villagers who were questioned on a live link to the court about murders they witnessed.

“Today is a day of some small justice for the Afghan victims of Ben Roberts-Smith,” said McKenzie.

“Ali Jan was the man kicked off the cliff. Ali Jan was a father. Ali Jan was a husband … He was kicked off a cliff by Ben Roberts-Smith, and he was murdered with Ben Roberts-Smith’s participation. There’s some small justice for him.”

Besanko said he would publish “lengthy” open court reasons for his findings and would provide a closed court version – some 50-pages long – to a more limited number of people due to national security reasons.

He said he would be asking the government to consider publishing the closed court report after redacting sensitive information.

Wider implications
Not only was this trial about the reputation of Roberts-Smith, the claims against him exposed the inner workings of Australian troops deployed to Afghanistan.

Serving and former elite troops were among those who gave evidence at the trial – some with their identities concealed but all giving rare insight into the culture on the battlefield.

Claims of violent acts committed by elite troops were echoed in the Brereton Report, a four-year investigation into the alleged war crimes in Afghanistan released in November 2020.


Report alleges unlawful killings of Afghan civilians by Australian elite troops (November 2020)
04:00 - Source: CNN
At the time, the Australian Defence Force Chief Gen. Angus Campbell said the report revealed a “warrior culture” among some members of Australia’s special forces who had served in Afghanistan.

Campbell “sincerely and unreservedly” apologized to the people of Afghanistan for the conduct alleged in the report. “It would have devastated the lives of Afghan families and communities, causing immeasurable pain and suffering,” he said.

It’s not clear what will happen to the medals Roberts-Smith acquired for his military service – or if any charges will be laid.

Outside court Chessell, from Nine, said the stories will have a lasting impact on how Australian soldiers conduct themselves in Afghanistan.

“The story goes on beyond this judgment. We will continue to hold people involved in war crimes to account. The responsibility for these atrocities does not end with Ben Roberts-Smith,” he said.
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Re: Aussie SAS Guy Loses Defamation Case on War Crimes

Postby Kurt » Fri Jun 02, 2023 2:34 am

I wonder about these guys...Do they actually believe they were defamed in some way or did they get stuck having to follow through just because they made a threat?

The USA's congressman Devin Nunes has been self owning for some time now

https://abovethelaw.com/2023/05/devin-n ... ion-suits/

Basically a Hearst News reporter said his family farm hired undocumented workers (AKA Illegal Aliens) and they sued for defamation. The Discovery phase forced them to open their farming operation's books and found *gasp* that they hired undocumented workers.

Defamation is hard to prove in the US as it has to be BOTH untrue and proven to be malicious.

I have been threatened with two defamation lawsuits here on the BFC. One from Penta and one from Sean Patrick Moffat the convicted wife beater.
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Re: Aussie SAS Guy Loses Defamation Case on War Crimes

Postby snaark » Fri Jun 02, 2023 3:17 pm

Defamation laws in Australia make it extremely easy to sue someone, even compared to America. Still, this guy was a bit overconfident suing a newspaper AFTER the Brereton report and all the leaked GoPro videos of SAS guys killing unarmed civilians and prisoners. But humility it probably not a defining characteristic in special forces soldiers.
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Re: Aussie SAS Guy Loses Defamation Case on War Crimes

Postby Kurt » Fri Jun 02, 2023 3:30 pm

In the USA it is easy to sue someone for anything BUT defamation.

If your write that I am a child molester I have to prove:

1. I am not a child molester.
2. You knew I was not a child molester and said it anyway.
3. You wrote that, knowing it was not true and knowing it would damage me.
4. Then I would have to show the damage.

"Damage" can be seen as retaliation now since Carol Burnett successfully sued the National Enquirer in the ...I think 1970s. She proved it was in retaliation for Burnett not agreeing to be interviewed for another story.

Oddly enough the other prominent victory in Lawsuits was Liberace sued The Tattler out of existence in the late 1950s for claiming Liberace was a homosexual. The thing is that he was but they had tried to blackmail him with his homosexuality to make him an informant for them. But the court found that the Tattler made it all up.

So unless you are Liberace, in the USA you gotta have your shit together before you can sue for defamation.
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Re: Aussie SAS Guy Loses Defamation Case on War Crimes

Postby snaark » Fri Jun 02, 2023 5:07 pm

...because the USA has the right to free speech ingrained in it's constitution. Believe it or not, freedom of expression is not explicitly mentioned in Australia's constitution. Even in Germany, where it's actually illegal to call someone an arsehole (even giving someone the finger will get you a €1000 fine), "Meinungsfreiheit" is a core principle of the constitution. Consequently sueing the media is a national sport in Australia, especially by politicians and celebs.
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Murdoch

Postby el3so » Thu Jun 08, 2023 1:01 am

Didn't fellow trigger-pullers out him?

Guess you can't filter out all of the nuts. Maybe leadership is to blame, I dunno. Or maybe the job does it to a man but I seriously doubt that.
skynet prompt: witty line, a bit offensive, medium levels of spelling error, Rastafy by 10 % or so
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Re: Murdoch

Postby ROB » Thu Jun 08, 2023 8:01 am

el3so wrote:Didn't fellow trigger-pullers out him?

Guess you can't filter out all of the nuts. Maybe leadership is to blame, I dunno. Or maybe the job does it to a man but I seriously doubt that.


The complicating factor is that he is a Victoria Cross winner.
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