Can you be denounced for speaking ill of someone?

Speaking ill of another person may seem commonplace and harmless, but the truth is that you could end up facing a legal problem.

Whenever you make a negative statement about someone else, you should know that there is a risk of being reported for an offence against honour. But what does this really mean?

In this article I explain in which cases speaking out can become a criminal offence and how this limit is balanced against the right to freedom of expression.

Does talking about someone else and affecting their honour have legal consequences?

We recommend that if you have nothing good to say about someone else, the best thing to do is to keep quiet, but this is something that most people find very difficult to do.

So, let's suppose that someone announces something bad against you and, to this end, wants to destroy your image.

Well, it is quite simple: we can talk about the crime of insult, which according to article 208 of the Penal Code is based, precisely, on saying something ‘bad’ about another person in an intentional way so that their honour or honour is affected.

For example, let's say you broke up with your ex and he/she tells all his/her friends in a Facebook post that your relationship ended because you were unfaithful and this affects your integrity as a person, even though it is a lie.

In this case, what you have to do is to file a complaint so that your ex assumes the consequences of saying something false that damaged your morale.

How will you be punished?

If we are talking about someone saying insults against you, according to the PC, the person who does this kind of action can be fined from 3 to 7 months.

For the situation where the person committing the offence uses advertising or media for that purpose, he/she can face a fine of 6 to 14 months.

What happens if they speak ill of me to blame me for a crime

It is not the same for someone to say something against you with the intention of affecting your honour as it is for someone to attribute a crime to you.

For example, you are at your workplace, your boss fires you and blames you for stealing from the office when it is untrue.

In this context, we are dealing with the crime of slander, which is much more serious.

What the Penal Code says in article 205 is that this act happens if the person responsible for slandering another person does so bearing in mind that what he or she claims is not true.

What is the penalty in this case?

For the simple fact that this is a more serious offence, compared to slander, here the awards go up to 12 months fine if the offence is in a minor form.

When the person in question uses publicity to commit the crime, then he or she can go to prison for up to two years.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can a person who has committed libel be pardoned?

The reality is that yes, it is possible. It can happen that someone blames someone else for a crime and it turns out that the other person did commit the crime. In this case, it is necessary for the police and others in charge of the investigation to confirm that the act actually took place. In this case, the person who is accused of slander could be acquitted.

Can someone commit slander or libel without knowing it?

No, absolutely not. When we talk about either of these two offences, you must be clear that one of their characteristics is that they are carried out with knowledge of what is being done. By this I mean that the person who speaks ill of you and affects your honour is acting with awareness of this and the same happens when it comes to slander.

Is slander via social networks more serious?

Affirmative. As we have already commented before and according to what the PC establishes, it is more serious when means are used that allow mass dissemination. This being the case, insult via social networks acquires more relevance.

If you have been involved in this type of offence, do not hesitate to contact us.