IN THE TRIAL CHAMBER

Before: Judge Antonio Cassese, Presiding

Judge Richard May

Judge Florence Ndepele Mwachande Mumba

Registrar: Mrs. Dorothee de Sampayo Garrido-Nijgh

Decision of: 15 May 1998

 

PROSECUTOR

v.

Zoran KUPRESKIC, Mirjan KUPRESKIC, Vlatko KUPRESKIC,
Vladimir SANTIC, also known as "VLADO", Stipo ALILOVIC, also known as "BRKO",
Drago JOSIPOVIC, Marinko KATAVA, Dragan PAPIC

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DECISION ON DEFENCE MOTIONS FOR SEPARATE TRIALS

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The Office of the Prosecutor:

Mr. Mark Harmon
Mr. Michael Blaxill
Mr. Terree Bowers

Counsel for the Accused:

Mr. Ranko Radovic, for Zoran Kupreskic
Ms. Jadranka Glumac, for Mirjan Kupreskic
Mr. Petar Pavkovic, for Vladimir Santic
Mr. Luko Susak, for Drago Josipovic
Mr. Petar Puliselic, for Dragan Papic
Mr. Borislav Krajina, for Vlatko Kupreskic

 

THE TRIAL CHAMBER

BEING SEISED of the Application For Separate Trial Against Accused Vlatko Kupreskic filed on 17 April 1998 and the Petition Of The Counsel Of Accused Zoran Kupreskic For Separation Of Proceedings on 24 April 98 (together referred to as "the Motions"), and of the Prosecutor's Consolidated Response To The Defence Applications For Separate Trials filed on 28 April 1998,

NOTING that Rule 48 of the Rules of Procedure and Evidence of the International Tribunal provides for joint indictments and trials of persons accused of crimes committed in the course of the same transaction,

CONSIDERING that the crimes alleged against Vlatko Kupreskic, Zoran Kupreskic and Mirjan Kupreskic in the indictment consist of the attack on the Muslim population of Ahmici on 16 April 1993, and are thus part of the same transaction, and that the indictment in this case therefore meets the requirements of Rule 48,

NOTING FURTHER that under Rule 82 persons accused jointly may be tried separately if necessary to avoid a conflict of interests that might cause serious prejudice to an accused, or to protect the interests of justice,

CONSIDERING that the Defence have failed to show that a conflict of interest might arise in the course of a joint trial which would seriously prejudice either of the three accused subject of the Motions, or that that the interests of justice would be otherwise threatened by a joint trial,

 

CONSIDERING ALSO that the Defendants' right to a fair and expeditious trial may not be advanced by ordering separate trials,

HEREBY DISMISSES THE MOTIONS.

 

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

 _________________________

Antonio Cassese

Presiding Judge

Dated this fifteenth day of May 1998

At The Hague

The Netherlands

[Seal of the Tribunal]