Public Defender’s Parliamentary Report Reviews Presumption of Innocence
The Public Defender has reviewed the breach of the presumption of innocence in his report of 2015, like the previous years.
The Public Defender's Office studied the public statements of the Prosecutor's Office, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the State Security Service, which violated the presumption of innocence.
In addition, members of the executive government made statements concerning the culpability of one of the defendants after the jury failed to deliver a verdict and a meeting was appointed for the selection of new members of a jury. Attention should be paid to the statement made by the Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs about the culpability of a person in the absence of the court judgment at the initial stage of the investigation as well as the explanation that the prosecution does not have the obligation to protect the presumption of innocence.
The public has a right to have information about the investigation of criminal cases, while law enforcement agencies shall ensure provision of information, but in all cases, the defendant's presumption of innocence must be respected. Protection of the presumption of innocence, guaranteed by the Constitution, shall be protected by any representative of legislative, executive and judicial bodies. Moreover, the danger that public statements of high officials may influence the jury’s verdict must be taken into account.
Observance of the presumption of innocence by members of the executive authorities, without expressing an opinion on the guilt of a certain defendant, is fundamental and necessary for full implementation of the principle of a legal state and the right to fair trial; it is also necessary the Prosecutor's Office, the Ministry of Internal Affair and the State Security Service to protect the presumption of innocence while providing information to the public. In particular, they may only express grounded suspicions, but shall not make affirmative conclusions about culpability of person/persons.