Case No. IT-02-54-T

IN THE TRIAL CHAMBER

Before:
Judge Richard May, Presiding
Judge Patrick Robinson
Judge O-Gon Kwon

Registrar:
Mr. Hans Holthuis

Decision:
04 January 2004

PROSECUTOR

v.

SLOBODAN MILOSEVIC

________________________________________

SECOND DECISION ON PROSECUTION MOTION FOR ADMISSION OF TRANSCRIPT PURSUANT TO RULE 92BIS(D) AND STATEMENT PURSUANT TO RULE 89(F) FOR WITNESS B-1804

________________________________________

Office of the Prosecutor:

Mr. Geoffrey Nice
Ms. Hildegaard Uertz-Retzlaff
Mr. Dermot Groome

Amici Curiae:

Mr. Steven Kay
Mr. Branislav Tapuskovic
Prof. Timothy McCormack

The Accused:

Mr. Slobodan Milosevic

 

THIS TRIAL CHAMBER of the International Tribunal for the Prosecution of Persons Responsible for Serious Violations of International Humanitarian Law Committed in the Territory of the Former Yugoslavia since 1991 ("International Tribunal"),

BEING SEISED of a confidential "Prosecution Motion for the Admission of Transcripts Pursuant to Rule 92bis(D) and the Statement of Witness B-1804 Pursuant to Rule 89(F)", filed by the Office of the Prosecutor ("Prosecution") on 23 January 2004 ("Motion"), requesting, inter alia, that the Trial Chamber, pursuant to Rule 92bis(D) of the Rules of Procedure and Evidence of the International Tribunal ("Rules"), admit into evidence the transcript and related exhibits of Witness B-1804 whose testimony relates to events in Eastern Bosnia between 1992 and 1995, specifically events in and around the Municipality of Srebrenica in 1995,

NOTING the Trial Chamber’s "Order on Prosecution Motion for the Admission of Transcripts Pursuant to Rule 92bis(D) and the Statement of Witness B-1804 Pursuant to Rule 89(F)", issued 23 January 2004, granting the Prosecution’s request that the witness’ statement be admitted into evidence under Rule 89(F) of the Rules,

CONSIDERING the Prosecution’s argument that the evidence should be admitted because it (1) is primarily crime-base evidence that does not go to the acts and conduct of the Accused and (2) is not so pivotal to the Prosecution case or so proximate to the Accused that the Trial Chamber should exercise its discretion to exclude the transcripts,

NOTING that Rule 92bis(D) and (E) of the Rules provides that the Trial Chamber (1) may admit a transcript of evidence given by a witness in proceedings before the International Tribunal that goes to proof of a matter other than the acts and conduct of the Accused and (2) shall decide whether to admit the transcript in whole or in part and whether to require the witness to appear for cross-examination,

CONSIDERING that the Trial Chamber is unable to assess the relevance or probity of the supporting material, which the Prosecution seeks as part of the Motion to have admitted into evidence, because (1) exhibits are missing; (2) an exhibit is present in the materials that was not referenced in the Motion; (3) portions of exhibits are illegible; (4) significant portions of exhibits are not translated from B/C/S into English; and (5) exhibits are untranslated in their entirety,

CONSIDERING therefore that the Trial Chamber is unable to determine the merit of the Motion,

PURSUANT to Rules 54 and 92bis(D) and (E) of the Rules,

HEREBY DENIES the Motion.

 

Done in both English and French, the English text being authoritative.

_________
Patrick Robinson
Judge

Dated this 4th day of January 2004
At The Hague
The Netherlands

[Seal of the Tribunal]