Chris Packham wins libel claim against website

Naturalist Chris Packham has won his libel assertion against a website that alleged helium misled radical into donating to a tiger rescue charity.

The presenter sued successful the High Court implicit articles published connected the Country Squire Magazine website.

Site exertion Dominic Wightman, writer Nigel Bean and impervious scholar Paul Read defended the libel claim.

Mr Justice Saini ruled successful Mr Packham's favour against Mr Wightman and Mr Bean, but dismissed the 1 against Mr Read.

Mr Wightman and Mr Bean were ordered to wage £90,000 successful damages to the Springwatch host.

"Mr Packham did not perpetrate immoderate acts of fraud oregon dishonesty," the justice said successful his 58-page judgment.

"Mr Packham did not prevarication and each of his ain statements was made with a genuine content successful its truth.

"There was nary fraud of immoderate benignant committed by him successful making the fundraising statements."

During the proceedings Mr Packham said helium had been targeted due to the fact that of his "deeply held views" astir humor sports.

The 61-year-old and his spouse Charlotte Corney are trustees of Isle of Wight sanctuary the Wildheart Trust.

Mr Packham was accused of dishonestly raising wealth astatine the commencement of the Covid-19 pandemic portion knowing the foundation was owed to person a £500,000 payment from its insurance.

But Mr Justice Saini said Mr Wightman and Mr Bean did not "come adjacent adjacent to establishing the important truth".

"Rather than approaching the task with an investigative mind, these defendants targeted Mr Packham arsenic a idiosyncratic against whom they had an agenda," helium said.

He added: "Any investigative journalism rapidly gave way… to progressively hyperbolic and vitriolic smearing of Mr Packham, with further unsubstantiated allegations of dishonesty regarding peat-burning and the trust's security gratuitously thrown in."

Giving grounds during the trial, Mr Packham explained: "We weren't hopeful that we would beryllium insured against Covid-19 closures."

He said the security payments "ultimately saved the sanctuary successful what was a clip of dire need".

"But to beryllium precise clear, if we had not launched the fundraising entreaty arsenic rapidly arsenic we did past these payments whitethorn person arrived excessively precocious to marque a difference," helium said.

He said the defendants' claims had "misled, agitated and fuelled a vocal and convulsive conspiratorial fringe who progressively station threatening and vile worldly astir maine and my family".

Mr Packham added: "I bash spell to locomotion my dogs successful the woods and wonderment 'is contiguous the time that a psychopath fuelled by each this hatred turns up and kills me?'

"I genuinely nary longer expect to unrecorded a agelong beingness escaped from unit and intimidation, due to the fact that it whitethorn lone instrumentality the 1 incorrect idiosyncratic to work Country Squire Magazine for things to spell horribly wrong."

During the proceedings Mr Wightman and Mr Bean's lawyer said the articles were existent and successful the nationalist interest.

Mr Read's lawyer described him arsenic a "mere impervious reader" and not liable for the articles.

The justice agreed that Mr Read "had nary editorial oregon equivalent work for the statements complained of oregon the determination to people them".

But helium said the others had "used this litigation arsenic a instrumentality to present violative worldly to smear Mr Packham".

He added: "The code descended into sinister threats and outright vitriol, including violative references to Mr Packham's neurodiversity, and maltreatment of (solicitors) Leigh Day.

"These were not the merchandise of immoderate acts of liable journalism."