Categories
Journalistic Survey
Articles
Reportage
Analitic
Photo Reportage
Exclusive
Interview
Foreign Media about Georgia
Editorial
Position
Reader's opinion
Blog
Themes
Children's Rights
Women's Rights
Justice
Refugees/IDPs
Minorities
Media
Army
Health
Corruption
Elections
Education
Penitentiary
Religion
Others

“Accused Victims” Waiting for Verdict

September 28, 2010
Salome Achba

The court-hearing of the case on the wounded students of the Tbilisi Technical University Zaza Shavliashvili, Vasil Giguashvili, Nika Beruashvili, Roland Nikolozashvili and Saba Mghvdeladze is due to end at the Tbilisi City Court today. On September 27, the court heard the speeches of the attorneys. The judge will pass verdict today, on September 28. The attorneys stressed on the irrelevances, incorrect legal qualifications of the activities and groundless solicitation of the prosecutor in the case materials.

According to the prosecutor’s petition, four accused – Zaza Shavliashvili, Nika Beruashvili, Vasil Gigiuashvili and Saba Mghvdeladze might be fined with 3 500 GEL each and be sent to prison for four years. The prosecutor solicited regarding the fifth accused – Roland Nikolozashvili – and requested three-year-long suspended sentence and fine of 2 000 GEL. As a result of the deal between the prosecutor and the attorney of the family, Nikolozashvili pleaded guilty at the last moment and aggravated the charge of the other accused. Instead, he received guarantee of freedom.

The Human Rights Center (HRIDC) pays particular attention to the case of the “accused victims” because the pretrial detainees were initially found victims in the case and later they became accused. The Human Rights Center has already published several articles about the case details and court hearings. (see: http://www.humanrights.ge/index.php?a=main&pid=12299&lang=eng)

In their final speeches the attorneys focused on the irrelevances in the two criminal cases launched on one incident. The wounded boys were victims in the initial case materials where the provokers of the quarrel were declared and Levan Abashidze was sentenced to 13-year-imprisonment for the incident. In the second case, the same young people were accused in hooliganism and the prosecutor’s office blames them in provoking the quarrel.

The attorneys requested the Judge Badri Kochlamazashvili to pay attention to these irrelevances and requested the court to enclose the initial judgment to the current case. Although the prosecutor Keti Chachava did not agree with the solicitation of the defense side, the judge allowed the attorneys to enclose the previous judgment on Levan Abashidze’s case to their defense speeches.

As we have already mentioned, according to the bill of particulars and judgment on Levan Abashidze’s case, the latter and his friends were declared to be the provokers of the incident in front of the Technical University. In the current case the prosecutor blames Zaza Shavliashvili, Vasil Giguashvili, Badri Mikatadze, Nika Beruashvili, Roland Nikolozashvili and Saba Mghvdeladze in the same offense. The attorneys say that the verdict on Abashidze in fact has power of the law because the prosecutor’s office has not appealed against the verdict. Thus, the prosecutor’s office opposes itself in the bill of particulars and its solicitation in one case.

The witnesses interrogated in both cases also confirm that the students did not start the quarrel. The only evidence of the prosecutor is confession of the accused Roland Nikolozashvili. However, the attorneys of the defense side claims that the testimony of Nikolozashvili does not prove that the “quarrel was prior consent of the group,” as it is qualified by the accusation against the detainees (Article 239, Part II-“a” of the Criminal Code of Georgia –“hooliganism perpetrated by a prior consent of a group shall be punishable by fine or by socially useful  labour from one hundred and eighty to two hundred hours in length or by corrective labour for up to a two-year term or by imprisonment for the term not in excess of five years).

“We had an impression at the trial that Nikolozashvili himself could not realize what he pleaded guilty in. Neither the judge nor the prosecutor asked him which crime he pleaded guilty in. It is clear that Nikolozashvili aimed to avoid the imprisonment and he did not want to find the impartial truth,” said the lawyer of the Human Rights Center Eka Kobesahsivli who represents Zaza Shavliashvili at the trial.

The prosecutor Keti Chachava requested four-year-imprisonment and fine of 3 500 GEL for the accused. According to her, the only palliative on Zaza Shavliashvili, Nika Beruashvili, Vasil Giguashvili and Saba Mghvdeladze was non-criminal-record on them. The prosecutor did not recall the fact that the young people were arrested when they were wounded. Two of them – Saba Mghvdeladze and Zaza Shavliashvili have poor health. According to the forensic and alternative expertise conclusions, the lives of the wounded boys are in danger. As a result of the wounds, Shavliashvili has C-hepatitis and Mghvdeladze has tuberculosis of intestines. It is clear that if the prosecutor’s office were more human, the prosecutor could have used it as palliative circumstance.

“During the preliminary investigation every accused made equal testimony. The prosecutor concluded that only last testimony of Nikolozashvili was cooperation with the investigation. However, Nikolozashvili’s cooperation with the investigation cannot be proved by the case materials; unless the prosecutor holds any secret materials which we do not know,” said the attorney of Nika Beruashvili and Saba Mghvdeladze Davit Dekanoidze. Supposedly, he meant secret deal between the prosecutor’s office and the attorney of Nikolozashvili.

The defense side deemed the legal qualification of the action incorrect and groundless. Article 239 Part II –“a” of the Criminal Code envisages hooliganism of the group which is perpetrated by a prior consent. “When did the accused manage to consent each other?!” the Attorney Dekanidze asked rhetorically “Did they agree when the accused were being bitterly beaten?! They had not started the quarrel and nobody expected it to start either. Or maybe when the accused were chased and then stabbed?! Of course, there was no prior consent. There is no evidence to prove the prior consent. Consequently, the legal qualification of the action is not correct.”

Article 239 (hooliganism) envisages the action which blatantly the public order. “The quarrel caused the delay in the traffic movement and people complained about it,” reads the bill of particulars. However, there is no testimony of any complaining person in the case materials.

The attorneys of the “accused victims” (except Nikolozashvili’s attorney Nana Pridonashvili) hope the Judge Badri Kochlamazashvili will evaluate the irrelevance between the two court hearings of one crime properly. In parallel to it, the attorneys also hope the judge will take into consideration the fact that the accused were victims in fact – they were stabbed and then their health conditions worsened in prison. They cannot attend the lectures and if they are placed in prison for a long time, it would hamper their education process. Unless the adequate verdict is passed, the attorneys will appeal to the Appeal Court.

News