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Russian prosecutors urge judge's dismissal as journalist murder trial reopened

By Bernard Hibbitts (editor) and University of Pittsburgh School of Law students.

[JURIST] Moscow Military District Court Judge Yevgeny Zubov on Tuesday reopened to the public the trial of three men accused of murdering journalist Anna Politkovskaya amid increasing confusion and calls from prosecutors for his removal from the case. Last Monday, Zubov ordered the trial to be open, in accordance with the wishes of Politkovskaya's family. Two days later, Zubov ordered the trial closed to the public and media, citing concern for the safety of the jury. A juror later told a Moscow radio station that he and other jurors did not fear for their safety, and Russia's Supreme Court later announced that it would review Zubov's decision to close the trial. Zubov reopened the trial Tuesday as 19 of 20 jurors signed a statement confirming that they had not complained to the judge. The Russian Prosecutor General's Office subsequently requested that Zubov be replaced for allegedly violating procedural rules. Also Tuesday, defense lawyers announced that court documents would show that Politkovskaya's murder was ordered by an unnamed Russian politician. The Moscow Times has local coverage. Sergey Khadzhikurbanov and brothers Dzhabrail and Ibragim Makhmudov, all from Chechnya, were arrested in connection with the killing in August 2007. The primary suspect, Rustam Makhmudov, also from Chechnya, has yet to be captured, but Russian authorities have said he is hiding in Western Europe. Closed preliminary hearings in the case began last month. Politkovskaya, a reporter for the Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta widely known for her stories about human rights abuses by Russian troops in Chechnya, was murdered after returning to her Moscow apartment building in October 2006.

Full post as published by JURIST - The Paper Chase on November 25, 2008 (boomark / email).