The Quezon City Regional Trial Court (QCRTC) has acquitted former entertainment reporter Marie Lozano in a libel case filed by her former colleague, Kapamilya TV reporter Gretchen Fullido.
Presiding Judge Juris Dilinila-Callanta of QCRTC Branch 85 ruled: “Accused Marie Milagros K. Lozano is hereby ACQUITTED of the crime charged for failure of the prosecution to prove her guilt beyond reasonable doubt. No cost.”
The trial began in 2019, with the decision handed down on December 9.
The court found no evidence of defamation in Lozano’s statements.
“Even assuming that, for some reason that Fullido got hurt about the foregoing statements, it has been ruled in MVRS Publications, et al, vs. Islamic Da’wah Council of the Philippines, Inc. et al that ‘the mere fact that the plaintiff’s feelings and sensibilities have been offended is not enough to create a cause of action for defamation. Defamation requires that something be communicated to a third person that may affect the opinion others may have of the plaintiff.’
“Likewise, insulting words are not actionable as libel per se, and a consequent personal embarrassment does not mean this is automatically equivalent to defamation.
“The court must still be satisfied that, from the entirety of the impugned writing, it is defamatory. Unfortunately for this case, this court was not satisfied that, based on the totality of evidence presented, the entirety of the impugned writing was defamatory. To the mind of this court, the alleged defamatory statement is not defamatory at all, enough to create a cause of action for defamation.”