The defenders of rationality are finally starting to breathe. For almost five years, the conspiracy and anti-vaccine circles were convinced: their “truth” would eventually come to light. “When lies take the elevator, truth takes the stairs,” they proclaimed to anyone who would listen. However, science had never gone their way. On the contrary, she provided all the evidence confirming the effectiveness of vaccines, masks and isolation measures, while demonstrating the ineffectiveness of hydroxychloroquine, azithromycin or ivermectin.
It is therefore towards justice that the Covid hucksters turned, hoping that the scientific debate would be settled in the courts, pushed by media lawyers assuring them that the magistrates would take their side rather than that of the numerous researchers, doctors or journalists who fight against medical misinformation. The latter were even promised a “Nuremberg 2.0” (sic), a series of trials similar to those which had judged the dignitaries of Nazi Germany. But as in the scientific field, reality finally caught up with them.
Seven trials lost
Xavier Azalbert, one of the spokespersons for the conspiracy sphere in his capacity as director of France Soir, a former newspaper which has become one of the most influential anti-vax blogs in France and which has distinguished itself by its articles calling for the beheading of researchers who criticize Didier Raoult have recently paid the price. On Monday, December 16, the Versailles Criminal Court declared him guilty of no less than thirteen counts of defamation against Antoine Daoust, the ex-owner of Fact and Furiousan information site that Xavier Azalbert tried to buy without success. “Ordered to pay a fine of 2,000 euros, 1,000 euros of which is suspended, 2,000 euros in damages for moral harm as well as to reimburse all legal fees, i.e. approximately 8,000 euros, Mr. Azalbert announced to appeal”, indicates to L’Express Maître Christian Peltier, counsel to Mr. Daoust.
The same day, the Nancy Court of Appeal ordered Xavier Azalbert to pay 3,000 euros in damages and 3,000 euros in reimbursement of legal fees for having defamed Dr. Damien Barraud, anesthetist-resuscitator at the Metz Thionville hospital. Xavier Azalbert has announced that he will appeal to the Court of Cassation. And on Wednesday December 11, the Aix en Provence Court of Appeal acquitted Doctor Jérôme Marty, general practitioner and president of the UFMLS union, in the defamation trial brought by the anti-vax association BonSens, chaired by Xavier Azalbert. “BonSens has rejected its requests, the good faith of Mr. Marty has been recognized” welcomes Maître Douchez, counsel to Jérôme Marty. It was particularly important to me to win because it was a SLAPP complaint, as in all these cases,” he assures.
White coats and science win
Nathan Peiffer-Smadja, infectious disease specialist at Bichat Claude Bernard Hospital (AP-HP), researcher at Inserm and Imperial College London, for his part was keen to “share some good legal news” on the Bluesky social network, Monday December 16. Like so many others, he had been violently attacked, insulted and defamed for speaking out against scientific disinformation during the Covid-19 pandemic. After years of litigation, he has just won his defamation case against the far-right disinformation site Riposte Laïque, which has not yet announced its intention to appeal or not. The young infectious disease specialist was also acquitted of the complaint for public insults brought by two doctors (who appealed) because he had qualified as “criminal” a document suggesting treating Covid-19 with a combination of hydroxychloroquine, d azithromycin and other “bogus therapies”. He also won his case against four Internet users (two appealed) in the context of a complaint for cyberharassment.
Also on Monday, December 16, Professor Karine Lacombe, head of the infectious diseases department at Saint-Antoine hospital (AP-HP) in Paris, was acquitted by the Aix-en-Provence Court of Appeal in the framework of the defamation trial brought by Didier Raoult – who can still appeal to the Court of Cassation – against him. The former director of the Marseille IHU, and more generally all the defenders of hydroxychloroquine, also experienced a heavy defeat on the scientific level. The very first IHU Marseille study on hydroxychloroquine was retracted on Tuesday, December 17, after more than four years of controversy. These works, signed in particular by Didier Raoult and published on March 20, 2020 in the International Journal of Antimicrobial Agentswere the cornerstone of the defenders of this treatment against Covid-19. The study is definitively invalidated.
The backlash is therefore severe for all those who spread false information throughout the health crisis. A situation which could make one smile if it had not caused so much suffering for the victims and wasted so much time for the magistrates and police officers responsible for these cases. Especially since many other trials are still to come.
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