Penultimate Chief Prosecutor Irakli Shotadze Nominated to Regain Post

The Prosecutorial Council, a body responsible for the selection of the new Prosecutor General, has selected penultimate chief prosecutor Irakli Shotadze to take back the post.

11 out of 12 members of the Prosecutorial Council voted in favor of Shotadze on February 7. His candidacy will now be submitted to the Parliament for approval, and will need support of 76 lawmakers (of sitting 150 MPs) to be confirmed as a new Prosecutor General. 

The position became vacant last December as the Georgian Parliament confirmed Shalva Tadumadze as the Supreme Court justice for the lifetime tenure.

Earlier in January, as Shotadze’s candidacy was put forward at the pre-selection stage, the ruling Georgian Dream party MPs spoke in his favor.

Vice Speaker Mamuka Mdinaradze then stressed that “Shotadze left no questions unanswered… If his candidacy is put forward to the Parliament, I will certainly side with him.”

The ruling Georgian Dream party has 93 lawmakers in the 150-seat legislature.

Shotadze, who first became the Chief Prosecutor in late 2015, resigned in May 2018, following mass demonstration at his office over the controversial Khorava street incident, which left two 16 year-olds – Davit Saralidze and Levan Dadunashvili – stabbed to death.

Irakli Shotadze joined the prosecutor’s office in 2006. In September 2010 he moved to the Finance Ministry’s Investigative Service, where he worked till November 2013. Later, in 2013-2015, he served as the first deputy chief prosecutor. 

The Prosecutorial Council is the 15-member body in charge of nominating candidates for the chief prosecutor, which was previously subordinated to the Justice Ministry, but the new Constitution of Georgia made it an independent body directly accountable to the Parliament.

Read also:

Irakli Shotadze – Prosecutor who Came in from the Cold?

This post is also available in: ქართული (Georgian) Русский (Russian)