Women were returned to the jury

The Constitutional Court of Russia restored the right of women to access the jury, eliminating their discrimination

Women may demand for themselves a jury and they have no right to refuse this - this is the essence of the decisions of the Constitutional Court of Russia on the complaint of Alena Lymar, who announced the discrimination of women accused of especially serious crimes.

The Constitutional Court of Russia recognized the norms of the Criminal Procedure Code contradicting the Constitution, according to which women are deprived of the right to a jury. The court noted that the deprivation of women of the jury provided for by law for men from 18 to 65 years does not meet the principle of legal equality, leads to discrimination and limits the right of women to judicial protection. At the same time, the Constitutional Court emphasized that these principles are consistent with the provisions of international legal acts.

I am very ashamed, but I learned about the existence of such a norm only when I saw this case in the Constitutional Court

Women in Russia were deprived of the jury, as they say, "under the noise." This happened two years ago, when the State Duma decided to strengthen the fight against terrorism. A document was included in the parliament, offering the relevant occasions of the amendments to several laws at once. The second reading in this bill suddenly appeared additions completely unrelated to counteracting terrorism. Among them, the norm prescribing to take from the jury and transfer all cases of crimes to the district courts, for which "lifelong imprisonment or death penalty cannot be appointed as a strict type of punishment." In Russia, women are forbidden to appoint such punishments in principle, as a result, they were left without a jury.

“Since the norm was amended by the second reading of the bill, the government did not give a review on it. And yes, I am very ashamed, but I learned about the existence of such a norm only when I saw this case in the Constitutional Court,” Mikhail Barschevsky , a plenipotentiary representative of the Government of the Russian Federation in the Constitutional Court of Russia, was admitted, from my point of view, this is some kind of accident. I think when this norm was accepted, all the consequences were simply not thought out. ”

A woman does not admit guilt and declares that the girl died as a result of an accident

Many Russian journalists about the legal conflict that arose became known from lawyers of the Ukrainian troops of Nadezhda Savchenko, whose case is being considered by the Donetsk court of the Rostov Region on charges of killing members of the Airborne Forces of the VGTRK. During the preliminary hearings, the defense petitioned for the consideration of the jury, but the court refused, citing the norm of the Code of Criminal Procedure that appeared in 2014 ( Clause 1, Article 31 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation ), and Savchenko’s lawyers had reason to dispute this novel.

But, contrary to expectations, the complaint to the Constitutional Court of Russia was written not by Savchenko, but by a 22-year-old resident of the Chelyabinsk region Alena Lymar , who was sentenced to eight years in prison for the murder of his half-year-old daughter. A woman does not plead guilty and declares that the girl died as a result of an accident - she fell out of the crib. Limar asked about the trial with the participation of jury, believing that only they could figure out this matter. But she was refused. The judge referred to the same provision of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation, according to which if the "higher measure" does not threaten, then the jury is not laid.

“A life sentence or death penalty is a measure of responsibility, and equality before the law and the court is guaranteed to everyone. Both men and women who have committed similar crimes, ceteris paribus, should be equal to judicial protection,” said Yuri Ponomarev’s lawyer, who helped his introductory Alena Lymar write a complaint to the Constitutional Court.

This complaint, in particular, notes: “The judicial practice of applying Clause 1, Article 31 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation in the part in which it does not allow the female persons accused of committing a crime under Part 2 of Article 105 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, to take the right to submit a petition for the consideration of the criminal case by the judge of the Federal Court of General of General Jurisdiction with the participation of the College from twelve jurors assessors ... contradicts the regulations of the equality of all before the law and the court, regardless of gender, race, nationality ... as well as other circumstances. "

The applicants were also supported by the representative of the Russian Government in the Constitutional Court Mikhail Barschevsky: “I said in my speech that the jury trial in Russia passes acquittals in 15 percent of cases, and, for example, the“ crown court ”, the so -called, in a jury, depriving women of the right to court, we reduce their chances of being justified. Therefore, I believe that the right to the court is the right to court Jurisdiction, to a justice court, is a right that should belong to any person who is accused of committing a serious crime and deprivation of this right on a sexual basis - this is a return to the Middle Ages.

For women, it is humiliating that ceteris paribus are considered by judges of lower qualifications

Why does a woman have no right to jury? Just because she can’t give her lifelong or death execution? But by the aggregate of crimes, a woman, for example, can get 30 years. Agree that this is not a very big difference with life imprisonment. In addition, I believe that for women it is humiliating that ceterisis equal to their cases are considered by judges of lower qualifications, in the district court, and not in the regional-string, as dealing with the jury, ”said Mikhail Barschevsky.

By the way, after the emergence of cases on the district court of cases, for which the death penalty or life sentence, the jury cannot claim, cannot be claimed by juveniles and men over 65 years of age, according to the law in Russia, they cannot be sentenced to the highest degree of punishment. But the first woman complained to the Constitutional Court.

The decision of the Constitutional Court comes into force from the moment of its proclamation, and now women in Russia are again opened to the jury. And Alena Lymar had the opportunity to prove his innocence: her case should be considered again, but this time with the participation of jury.

Nadezhda Savchenko , who had previously refused to file a complaint with the Constitutional Court for a similar occasion, cannot apply for a review of his case with the participation of the jury. “If cases have already been appointed with the participation of the College of Judges, they will be considered,” said Valery Zorkin , chairman of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation, answering the questions of journalists after the proclamation of the court decision, “the case of Savchenko is already considered and is not subject to revision.”