Verkhovna Rada refuses to support trial by jury

A proposal to add a draft law on introducing trial by jury on to the parliamentary agenda failed to gain enough support on Wednesday.  Only 101 Deputies voted for it, with 226 needed.

The bill was submitted by Deputies from BYuT, Serhiy Vlasenko and from Our Ukraine – People’s Self-Defence, Hennady Moskal.  It proposed introducing amendments to the Criminal Procedure Code, envisaging separate procedure for examination of a criminal case by jury.  Juries would be appointed in cases involving medium seriousness or particularly serious crimes in cases where the accused denied the charges.

Both Yulia Tymoshenko and Yury Lutsenko have said that they plan to apply for trial by jury.  As reported, the criminal prosecutions with respect to these two opposition political leaders as well as other government officials in Tymoshenko’s government have prompted accusations of selective justice and the courts being used for political ends.  In the case of Yury Lutsenko, the grounds for his continued remand in custody are very seriously dubious. 

Information about the draft law from Ukrainska Pravda