About the desecration of the bridge

The artist Pyotr Pavlensky and his defense completed acquaintance with the materials of the case of the Freedom action , which was held on February 23, 2014 in St. Petersburg, on the Small Stable Bridge, opposite the Temple of the Savior on the Blood. The participants in the action set fire to several tires, held the flags of Ukraine and black flags and beat the iron in solidarity with events on the Maidan. Pavlensky is accused of vandalism, committed by a group of persons. Another thing was allocated to separate production in relation to unidentified persons - other participants in the action. The artist’s lawyer Dmitry Dinze explained to the OVD-Info that the investigation understood by vandalism in his client.

How does vandalism determine in the case?

- In the case file there are results of a study of concepts that are used in the article of the Criminal Code “Vandalism”. In this study, vandalism is understood to mean falling, hudbing, and calming down. According to investigators, the tires somehow dirty the bridge. From this they conclude that vandalism took place. Roughly speaking, now it turns out that if I spat in a historical place in St. Petersburg, then I can be held accountable for vandalism.

We, in turn, filed a motion to terminate the criminal case for the lack of corpus delicti, because there was no direct intent to commit vandalism, it was an artistic action that was simply a specific way. So far, we have not received any answer to the petition.

Does the word "desecration" appear in the case file?

- Yes, it is precisely the case of falling, begging, and so on. According to the investigation, Pavlensky committed the bridge, staining it with a fabric of tires. Among the arguments, the bridge is a historical place and belongs to cultural heritage, and the people who were interrogated during the investigation were outraged by this action. Roughly speaking, this is a game with words.

Are there general criteria that define the concept of “vandalism”?

- No, this is always determined in an individual way - as the preliminary investigation authority considers.

That is, the article is written so that it can be interpreted as you like?

- Absolutely. If you focus on the practice of applying the article, then vandalism is drawings in cultural and historical places, inscriptions with obscene abuse, made by paint on buildings, and a murmur of the context of a cultural place with certain symbols. Vandalism is when the tombstones are broken, that is, the destruction of cultural and historical objects occurs. Household vandalism is considered, for example, to break the windows in trams and electric trains, falling off the tram of feces, paint. That is, bringing into unusable, partial destruction of property by public transport.

On what basis is the conclusion that the place where the action occurred is historical?

- The investigation requested certificates from a representative of the city administration, who monitors historical monuments. According to these certificates, the small stable bridge refers to the historical heritage.

When will the case be referred to the court?

- As I understand it, this will happen by the end of May.