Announcement of Constitutional Court’s Ruling on Pre-Trial Detention Limits Delayed

The Constitutional Court was planning to announce its verdict into a complaint filed by ex-mayor of Tbilisi Gigi Ugulava over 9-month pre-trial detention limit on Tuesday but it had to delay it because of absence of a newly appointed judge.

Ugulava, one of the leaders of the opposition UNM party, who is in pre-trial detention for 14 months already, appealed the Constitutional Court in April, 2015 seeking repealing of legislative clauses, which he argues contradict constitutionally set 9-month limitation of pre-trial detention.

Constitution says that the term of pre-trial detention of an accused person should not exceed 9 months. But criminal procedures code allows detention beyond 9-month limitation if new charges are filed against the same person.

When original nine-month pretrial detention for Ugulava, who is facing multiple criminal charges which he denies as politically motivated, was nearing its end, prosecutors re-qualified in March, 2015 one of the criminal charges against him in order to remand him in custody. Similar tactic was used by the prosecution against ex-defense minister and former prison chief Bacho Akhalaia, who was arrested in November 2012 and whose pre-trial detention was extended for several times by gradually adding new charges against him before he was convicted in October, 2014.

The Constitutional Court said earlier on September 15 that it was going to announce its verdict at 5pm local time.

But in the evening the Court said in a statement that it had to delay the announcement as the verdict lacked signature of one of the nine judges – Merab Turava, who cited health reasons behind his failure to be present.

Turava became a member of the Constitutional Court in March, 2015 after being nominated by lawmakers from the Georgian Dream ruling coalition and approved by the Parliament.

A verdict by the Constitutional Court can only be announced after it is signed by all the judges, who participated in the adjudication of case.

The Constitutional Court said that a judge has no right not to sign the final verdict regardless of his or her opinion over the case.

New date for the announcement of the verdict into Ugulava’s complaint has not yet been set.

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