Sin Comillas: the Court of Appeals dismisses the CPI suit; Minet announces she will go to the Supreme Court

On April 8, 2026, Sin Comillas reprints that the Court of Appeals dismissed the Centro de Periodismo Investigativo's suit against Jenniffer González Colón for requiring Department of State certification to enter conferences at La Fortaleza. The panel —Grace Grana Martínez, Eric R. Ronda Del Toro, and Glorianne M. Lotti Rodríguez— reversed the Court of First Instance judgment.

Iris L. Cancio González, in late February, had said that requiring the credential was unconstitutional. The Supreme Court, the page adds, had already denied the emergency petition the Governor filed in late March. The panel held that «the press certification does not constitute an unconstitutional restriction» and that «a litigant cannot constitutionally challenge an administrative procedure the litigant never attempted to use».

Sin Comillas dates the appointments: Grana Martínez by Luis Fortuño in 2012; Ronda Del Toro by Wanda Vázquez in 2020; Lotti Rodríguez by González Colón in 2025, a defendant in this case. Carla Minet said they will go to the Supreme Court: «The State cannot be the one who determines who may exercise the role of journalist», and she pointed to a panel of three judges appointed by the party in power.

ASPPRO and the Overseas Press Club, according to the same page, said the badge obstructs journalists. The CPI observed that the Court of Appeals also did not order a hearing. The San Juan Daily Star covered April 9 at another URL. This note uses the April 8 reprint. This is not original reporting.

The panel, Sin Comillas reproduces, added that because an administrative body exists to issue certifications it is reasonable and neutral to request one, and that there is no evidence the CPI was denied obtaining it. The Court of First Instance, according to the judgment the outlet summarizes, erred by not holding a hearing; the Court of Appeals did not order one either. This note does not turn that panel into a recusal. What remains is April 8 and the announcement of going to the Supreme Court.

Source: Sin Comillas (reprint of the CPI, Apr. 8, 2026). https://sincomillas.com/cpi-apelara-decision-que-exige-credenciales-gubernamentales-a-los-periodistas/