European Court of Human Rights rules against parents of Madeleine McCann in case against Portugal

The European Court of Human Rights ruled on Tuesday against the parents of missing British toddler Madeleine McCann, saying that Portugal did give the parents a fair hearing in their libel battle against a former Portuguese policeman. The police officer, Goncalo Amaral, who worked on the investigation into Madeleine's disappearance in 2007, suggested in his book Truth of the Lie that the youngster's parents had been involved.

On May 3, 2007, Madeleine McCann, 3, vanished from her bedroom in the apartment her family were staying in at the Praia da Luz resort in Portugal while her parents, Kate and Gerry, ate with friends at a nearby restaurant. In September 2007, Gerry and Kate McCann were questioned by police as formal suspects. The following July, the Portuguese police dropped their investigation because of a lack of evidence and cleared the McCanns of any involvement.

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