03/02/2020 Economou v David De Freitas (Rev 1) [2016] EWHC 1853 (QB) (27 July 2016) 53. The fourth publication complained of by Mr Economou is a further article by Sandra Laville ("the Second Guardian Article"). This appeared on the Guardian website at about 18:14 on the evening of 7 November 2014. The Second Guardian Article is headed "Daughter 'would still be alive' if CPS had stopped charge of false rape claim; As inquest opens, father of Eleanor de Freitas, who killed herself days before trial, says there was no reason to prosecute her". The article, 19 paragraphs long, contained the following wording: "[1] The father of a young woman who killed herself after being put on trial for making up a rape allegation said she would still be alive today if the Crown Prosecution Service had not pursued her. [2] Eleanor de Freitas, 23, took her own life in April, three days before she was to face trial for perverting the course of justice. ... [3] The case against her was initiated by her alleged attacker, who spent hundreds of thousands of pounds on a private prosecution. The CPS took over the case and prosecuted De Freitas despite being told by police that there was no evidence she had lied, and in the knowledge that she was suffering from a psychiatric illness. [4] David de Freitas, the woman's father, said on Friday: "We can see no reason whatsoever why the CPS pursued Eleanor. If the CPS had put a stop to it at the time I would still have a daughter. She would not be dead. It is as clear as that." [5] An inquest into the death of De Freitas, an A-Grade student who suffered from bipolar disorder, is due to open in west London on Friday afternoon. Lawyers for her family are calling on the coroner to postpone the hearing in order to carry out a wider inquiry in front of a jury to examine whether the CPS decision to prosecute was a contributing factor in her death. [6] Her father said: "Eleanor was a vulnerable young woman, diagnosed with bipolar, who made a complaint of rape as a result of which she herself became the subject of legal proceedings. This was despite the fact the police did not believe there to be a case against her. [7] "There are very serious implications for the reporting of rape cases if victims fear that they may themselves end up the subject of a prosecution if their evidence is in any way inconsistent. It is therefore of the utmost importance that the CPS consider very carefully whether such cases are in the public interest." [8] He added: "I feel that the system of fairness in this country has let me down terribly, and something needs to be done so that this can never happen again. … [10] Lawyers for the CPS were told by the detective who investigated the rape allegation that there was no evidence that she had lied, they would not be investigating her for perverting the course of justice and the crime had been recorded as rape. [11] Victim Support and Justice for Women have both written to the director of public prosecutions, Alison Saunders, expressing their concerns at the wider implications of the De Freitas case for rape complainants coming forward in future if alleged rapists are able to use the law to intimidate them. [12] In a statement, Saunders said she was concerned about the case and was investigating it personally. "I have asked the team which dealt with this case for a full explanation which addresses all of the De Freitas family's concerns. I appreciate the family's unease which is why I am looking at this personally in order to satisfy myself on the detail surrounding all the stages of the case." www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWHC/QB/2016/1853.htm 14/58