RUSSIA RELIGION NEWS


Appeal of Christensen's verdict planned

LAWYER FOR JEHOVIST CHRISTENSEN SENTENCED TO SIX YEARS FOR EXTREMISM TO FILE APPEAL IN E.C.H.R.

MBKhMedia, 6 February 2019

 

The defense of the adherent of the Jehovah's Witnesses, the Dane Dennis Christensen, who was sentenced in Russia to six years in a penal colony for extremism, will file an appeal in the European Court of Human Rights, attorney Anton Bogdanov told MBKhMedia.

 

"The position of my client from the start was that only complete acquittal will suit us. That is, even if he were not sentenced to confinement in prison, we still would appeal the verdict," he declared.

 

"So we are planning to proceed through both all Russian judicial instances and, if necessary, to file documents in the E.C.H.R.," Bogdanov concluded.

 

Today the Zheleznodorozhny court of Orel sentenced Christensen to six years in a penal colony on a charge of extremism (art. 282.2 CC).

 

"The court comes to the conclusion of assigning to Christensen a penalty in the form of real incarceration. The court finds that a different measure of punishment would not facilitate his reformation," the judge ordered.

 

Taking into account the time already spent in court and the law, according to which one day in a SIZO equates to a day and a half in a penal colony, Christensen should spend about another three years in confinement. . . . (tr. by PDS, posted 7 February 2019)

 


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