Savchenko’s case exempted from jury trial jurisdiction

A jury court cannot consider a criminal case of the former Ukrainian pilot Nadezhda Savchenko under Russian laws, lawyer Nikolay Polozov told TASS.

"Today, the investigator told us that all the five appeals, including a request to hold a jury trial, had been turned down. I have not seen the text but I assume that it is linked to decision to exempt this kind of charge against women from the jurisdiction of jury trials," Polozov said.

He explained that early in 2015 the charge of intentional murder of two and more persons brought against women had been exempt from the jurisdiction of jury trials because women in Russia cannot be sentenced to life imprisonment.

"A jury trial can hear a case initiated against a man on the same charges but it cannot do that if the charge is brought against a woman. We consider this provision to be illegitimate and intend to appeal it," Polozov said adding that Savchenko’s defence lawyers would again demand a jury trial during preliminary hearings.

Savchenko is being charged with the murder of two and more persons by universally dangerous methods that was motivated by hatred of a social group and committed by a group of persons who acted on previous concert. She is also accused of illegally crossing the Russian state border.

According to investigators, Savchenko learrnt the location of Russian journalists of the Russian State Television and Radio Company (VGTRK) and other civilians during military hostilities near Luhansk, eastern Ukraine, in June 2014. She informed the Ukrainian armed units in the area about their position, which was later shelled by the Ukraine army. VGTRK journalist Igor Kornelyuk and operator Anton Voloshin were killed. Other civilians who were nearby could have been hurt.