The failure of the Crown to win a court case against the Taimi 'o Tonga newspaper continued last week with the dismissal by a jury in the Nuku'alofa Supreme Court on September 3 of a criminal defamation case against Mateni Tapueluelu, the Editor of the Taimi 'o Tonga.

The Crown claimed that Mateni defamed the Minister of Police Clive Edwards, in an article that was published in the Taimi 'o Tonga in 2000, alleging that the minister master-minded a break-in at the house of the former Minister of Justice, Tevita Tupou. The newspaper had also alleged that the Minister of Police unfairly dismissed Mateni Tapueluelu who was also a junior warden at the prison before he joined the newspaper, and unfairly dismissed Mateni's father, Semisi Tapueluelu, the chief superintendent at the Prison.

Semisi and Mateni Tapueluelu were dismissed from the public service for alleged incompetence and not reporting to work.

Semisi, Mateni and others then filed a petition to the King based on their dissatisfaction with the restructuring of the prison's administration and their dismissal.

After Mateni was dismissed from the prison service he became the editor of the Taimi 'o Tonga newspaper.

Following the presentation of the petition to the King, the Minister of Police went on OBN Television to explain and to justify why he had dismissed Semisi and Mateni.

Mateni in return wrote an article in the Taimi 'o Tonga claiming some underhand actions by the Minister of Police.

During the resulting defamation trial the Crown claimed that the allegations made in the article were not true and that Mateni wrote the article with the malicious intention of defaming the Minister of Police.

The defence provided evidence, which included the tape recordings of conversations between the Minister of Police and prison wardens, and affidavits of prison wardens supporting their allegations. In the end the defendant's legal counsel, convinced the jury of four men and three women that the Crown had no case.

Mr Justice Ford presided.

The Crown was represented by Linda Miller from the Crown Law Department and defendant was represented by Sifa Tu'utafaiva.