Moscow judges seek protection after getting death threats
| Publisher | Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty |
| Publication Date | 23 September 2010 |
| Cite as | Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Moscow judges seek protection after getting death threats, 23 September 2010, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/4cb83e83c.html [accessed 1 June 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
September 23, 2010
MOSCOW – A Moscow court official says 13 judges in the Russian capital have requested police protection this year after receiving death threats, RFE/RL's Russian Service reports.
Moscow City Court chairwoman Olga Yegorova said on September 22 that she has never received so many requests for protection from judges before. One Moscow judge has been killed this year.
Yegorova added that the figure only includes judges in Moscow, and that there have been attacks on judges in other regions. She said that she, too, has received death threats.
"It's either the result of someone dissatisfied with how a case was handled and the severity of a sentence, or it's because someone is jealous and angry," Yegorova said. "I think it's necessary to process cases quicker, issue comprehensive procedural documents so that citizens understand why they receive rejections [of their cases]."
Yegorova refused to discuss the perceived partiality of Moscow judges in libel cases involving Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov, but claimed that about one-third of legal complaints lodged by citizens against the Moscow municipal authorities are successful.
She also said that as a result of amendments to the criminal code – introduced this year by President Dmitry Medvedev – that outlaw the pretrial detention of people charged with economic crimes, 13 suspects in Moscow have been released and placed under house arrest and 22 others awaiting trial for economic crimes have been released on bail.
Link to original story on RFE/RL website
