The senator of the Socialist Party (PS), Fidel Espinoza, responded before the Court of Appeals of Valparaíso to the civil action filed by the former deputy, former minister of the Government of President Boric and activist of the Democratic Revolution (RD), Giorgio Jackson.
On Monday, January 8, Jackson publicly announced the filing of a civil lawsuit against Espinoza for libel and slander. The dispute dates back to July 2023, when 23 computers were stolen from the Ministry of Social Development, while Jackson was minister. In his lawsuit, Jackson accused Espinoza of publicly defaming him by singling him out as the “gang leader” responsible for the robbery. Furthermore, he argued that these accusations affected his reputation and demands compensation for the damages suffered.
It is worth mentioning that, that same Monday, the president of the PS, Paulina Vodanovic, received a call from the president of the RD, Diego Vela, “notifying” that Giorgio Jackson was at that moment filing a complaint for insults and slander against Senator Fidel Espinoza. The indignation in the PS was total, it was not understood how they had not warned before or coordinated the action with the party leadership.
Espinoza’s response came several weeks later, through constitutional lawyer Francisco Zúñiga (PS), who—according to the newspaper Third— argued that Jackson’s lawsuit lacks specific details about the defamatory acts and questioned the basis for calculating moral damages. Additionally, he noted that the lawsuit leaves open the possibility of including new allegations in the future, which he considers imprecise and confusing.
Now, the political contest between Jackson and Espinoza enters a new stage, where the Court of Appeals of Valparaíso will be in charge of resolving this legal conflict. This confrontation is expected to have repercussions in both the political and judicial spheres, since both members of the ruling party will face each other in court to defend their positions and reputations.