THE TRIAL OF ASSASINATION ATTEMPT ON TRANSGENDER WOMAN ENDED

The trial of assassination attempt on transgender person E.A. at the First Instance Court of General Jurisdiction of Yerevan city (Court) ended on February 3, 2021, and on the same day the court pronounced the decision. 

New Generation Humanitarian NGO provided the victim of the case with lawyer’s and attorney’s services represented by attorney Ara Gharagyozyan. 

By the decision of the court the defendant was found guilty of the crime under 1st part of Article 112 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Armenia and was sentenced to imprisonment for 3 years and 6 months. Counting the 2 days of having been kept in prison, the defendant was imposed a punishment of 3 years, 5 months and 28 days. However, by application of the law of the Republic of Armenia on “Announcing criminal cases’ amnesty on the occasion of the 2800th anniversary of the founding of Erebuni-Yerevan and the 100th anniversary of the declaration of independence of the First Republic of Armenia, the defendant was freed from serving the sentence imposed for the crime. The preventive measure of signature about not leaving the country imposed on the defendant was also removed. 

The civil lawsuit was satisfied partially by the court decision, it was decided to confiscate AMD 140.000 from the defendant in favor of the aggrieved person E.A. for coverage of the necessary costs incurred by the aggrieved person for treatment, and the rest part of the civil lawsuit was left without investigation reserving the right to the aggrieved person to file a civil lawsuit according to the civil court procedures. 

 

Ara Gharagyozyan, attorney of New Generation Humanitarian NGO states that the defendant did not receive corresponding punishment for the perpetrated crime. 

The aggrieved party does not agree with the criminal-legal qualification of the case, the civil issue is not solved, the right to fair trial established by Convention 6 of ECHR has been violated and the above-mentioned decision of the court will be appealed. 

  

Pre-history of the case: 

After having used trans person E. A. ‘s services, a visitor, learning about the person’s gender identity, burned the latter’s apartment and left. The aggrieved person received severe body injuries and burns. E. A. refused to use the services of her former lawyer and applied to New Generation Humanitarian NGO who provided the victim with attorney’s services represented by Ara Gharagyozyan. 

Until present day the judges presiding the trial changed 3 times, as a result of which the case trial started from the beginning every time and didn’t come to its end. 

The defendant made a petition for speedy trial of the case. The accuser made no objections to the presented petition. Despite the objections and grounds presented by the victim’s attorney, on January 21, 2021, the Court made a decision to conduct a speedy trial. 

 

The fact that the Accuser made no objections to the speedy trial of the case despite the availability of many grounds for it, speaks of the issue that relevant measures are not undertaken by the state in terms of correct criminal-legal qualification of crimes based on sexual orientation and gender identity.  

New Generation Humanitarian NGO will watchfully follow up for the fair solution of this case.