It is a legal victory for Jean-Luc Mélenchon.
The former LFI deputy was released on Thursday by the Paris court in a defamation case.
The facts judged are not entirely recent.
They date back to the searches that took place in the premises of La France insoumise as well as at the home of Jean-Luc Mélenchon in 2018, as part of an investigation into the campaign accounts of the 2017 presidential election.
Complaint declared “null”
The 17th chamber of the Paris judicial court declared "void" the complaint with civil party filing by Mr. Logerot, president of the national commission for campaign accounts and political financing (CNCCFP) between 2005 and 2020.
Mr. Logerot, 86, present at the hearing, reproached Mr. Mélenchon for remarks broadcast in videos and in a book after the CNCCFP had made a report relating to suspicions of irregularity in the accounts of LFI during the 2017 presidential campaign.
For the court, if there is indeed "a dose of exaggeration" in the comments prosecuted, the latter "do not exceed the permissible limits of freedom of expression".
The court also noted that Mr. Mélenchon's remarks are "devoid of vulgar or filthy character".
Regarding the passages of the book "And so on" denounced by Mr. Logerot and in which Mr. Mélenchon denounced Mr. Logerot's salary increase of 57% after the report and concluded "ingratitude is badly accepted in these circles “, the court ruled that Mr. Mélenchon can benefit from” the excuse of good faith “.
Mélenchon had himself filed a complaint for defamation
Between jostling, scathing accusations and bird names, the procedure had not really gone smoothly.
The Paris public prosecutor's office had even opened an investigation, following the incident, for "threats or acts of intimidation against the judicial authority" and "violence against persons holding public authority" after the clashes that took place during these searches.
In 2019, the former rebellious leader was also sentenced, on appeal, to a three-month suspended prison sentence and a fine of 8,000 euros for intimidation and rebellion.
Read alsoWhat you need to know about the searches at Mélenchon and insubordinate France
In March 2021, Jean-Luc Mélenchon had himself filed a defamation complaint against Jean-Guy de Chalvron, former rapporteur for the Campaign Accounts Commission, for his denunciation of "irregularities" in the candidate's expenses.
The latter had been released, on appeal, last May.
