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Judgment awarded in favour of man mistakenly identified as Cleo Smith’s abductor
The Supreme Court of Western Australia has awarded a defamation judgment in favour of Terrance Flowers, the man wrongfully identified by the Seven Network as the person who abducted and held four-year-old girl Cleo Smith for over two weeks.
Naomi Neilson
Mr Flowers, who goes by his mother’s name of Kelly on social media, was mistakenly identified by the Seven Network in broadcasts, in an online article and across social media posts. This was despite his name being spelt differently from the man who was charged with abducting Cleo as she slept in a tent with her family.
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The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Western Australia, Justice Peter Quinlan, entered judgment in open court in favour of Mr Flowers in his defamation claim against Channel Seven. The proceedings have been settled on confidential terms.
Mr Flowers was represented in court by barrister Sue Chrysanthou SC.
Commenting on the outcome, Mr Flowers’ lawyers from O’Brien Criminal and Civil Solicitors said that they and their client are very happy with the settlement. Mr Flowers is looking forward to “getting on with his life” with his wife and baby son.
In November, after Cleo was found, Seven used images taken from Mr Flowers’ Facebook page to run alongside the incorrect stories without his consent. In the statement of claim, his lawyers said that this was the first time any pictures of a purported suspect had been shared in media in relation to Cleo’s disappearance.
In a statement around the time the defamation action was first announced, O’Brien Criminal and Civil Solicitors said that being identified as responsible for Cleo’s abduction and disappearance was “extremely distressing” to Mr Flowers.
Cleo Smith was reunited with her family on 3 November after Western Australia Police located her alone in a house belonging to Carnarvon man Terence Darrell Kelly, who was taken into custody and charged with two offences, including forcibly or fraudulently taking, enticing away or detaining a child under the age of 16.
