14 April 2000
Trial Chamber I (Judges Rodrigues [Presiding], Riad and Wald)

The Issue

The Prosecutor presented an oral motion on 6 March 2000 requesting that Dragoljub Prcac, who was admitted to the UN Detention Unit on 5 March 2000, be tried jointly with Miroslav Kvocka, Milojica Kos, Mlado Radic and Zoran Zigic, whose trial had begun on 28 February 2000.

The Trial Chamber rendered a Decision dated 8 March 2000 that the trial of Miroslav Kvocka, Milojica Kos, Mlado Radic and Zoran Zigic be suspended until 2 May 2000 in order to give Dragoljub Prcac time to prepare his defense and to be ready for a joint trial.

The Defense agreed to the joinder during the Status Conference on 22 March 2000 providing that the case be ready for trial on 2 May 2000.

A pre-trial conference was held on 12 April 2000 during which the Trial Chamber found that the case was trial-ready and that the accused was willing to have his trial joined.

The Decision

The Trial Chamber considered that the four co-accused are all charged with crimes committed in the course of the same transaction in the Omarska camp between 31 May 1992 and 31 December 1992.

It ruled that a joint trial would accelerate the trial of one of the accused without prejudice to his or to the other accused’s rights of defense, avoid duplication of evidence, minimize hardship caused to witnesses, and therefore best serve the interests of justice.

Pursuant to articles 20 and 21(4)(c) of the Statute, and Rules 48 and 82 of the Rules of Procedure and Evidence, the Tribunal ordered that the trial of Dragoljub Prcac be joined to that of Miroslav Kvocka, Milojica Kos, Mlado Radic and Zoran Zigic.

The Trial Chamber then requested the Registry to determine and assign a new case number to the joined cases.