Supreme Court Rejects Appeals on Robert Kocharian's Bail Conditions, Lawyer Reports

The Supreme Court has rejected the appeals regarding the bail conditions of Armenia's second president, Robert Kocharian. This was announced by the former president's lawyer, Haik Alumyann, during a press conference on September 9.

It is noteworthy that the Court of Appeals had previously released the former president on a bail of 2 billion drams, which is unprecedented in Armenia.

The lawyer recalled that the decision was appealed by other lawyers, the Prosecutor General's office, and the party claiming to be the victim. According to Alumyann, the victim's side does not have the legal right to appeal the bail decision, and the Supreme Court had previously stated its position on this issue.

Under the Criminal Procedure Code, the Prosecutor General and his deputies also do not possess such powers. However, as the lawyer pointed out, in practice this has been handled differently, with the Supreme Court almost always granting the requests of the Prosecutor General's office.

He emphasized that the defense has drawn the Supreme Court's attention to this circumstance and expressed hope that the court would find the strength to change this incorrectly formed practice. “It is concerning that our appeal has not yet been accepted for proceedings,” Alumyann added.