Opposition Leader Lennox Linton threatens to sue Minister Petter Saint Jean for “defamatory” comments

​Leader of the Parliamentary Opposition, Lennox Linton has threatened to take legal action against Minister for Education and Human Resource Development, Petter Saint Jean for if he does not apologize or offer to pay compensation for “defamatory” comments.
 
Mr Linton issued a letter dated 12th June 2017 to Minister Saint Jean, through his Attorney Cara Shillingford, saying that Mr Saint Jean “falsely and maliciously published defamatory statements about him on the radio”. According to Shillingford’s letter, Minister Saint Jean said the following on 13th February 2017;
 
“In fact Lennox Linton is one of the individuals who for a very long time in reference to the Prime Minister have been articulating very clearly that the country is run by laws and not by men. But apparently, the same Lennox Linton believes that he is above and beyond the law. We must be very clear in this matter that the events of last Tuesday was planned, orchestrated and executed by the leadership of the United Workers Party and the leadership of the Dominica Freedom Party - people like Johnson Boston and Michael Astaphan. We must also be very clear that they must take full responsibility for the events during and after the activity that they organized…”
 
The letter added that “many persons” who listened to Mr Saint Jean’s comments “believed that Mr Linton was guilty of several criminal offences, including destruction to property and rioting, committed on the 7th February 2017, in the community of Roseau. You falsely and maliciously accused him of planning, orchestrating and executing the events both during and after the activity he organized”.
 
As such, Mr Linton is “greatly aggrieved” by Mr Saint Jean’s “vicious, unfounded and defamatory accusations” and demanded that he issues an apology and retraction, in words acceptable to him, within fourteen (14) days of receipt of this letter. The letter also demands that Mr Saint Jean offers to pay compensation and costs within the said fourteen days, as failure to comply with this demand will result in legal proceedings being commenced against him, without further notice.