Selçuk Kozağaçlı Arrested Again at 10-Minute ‘Hearing’

* Photograph: Progressive Lawyers Association (ÇHD), Twitter

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Chairperson of the Progressive Lawyers Association (ÇHD) and a member of the People's Law Bureau (HHB), Selçuk Kozağaçlı was arrested again today (September 17). The İstanbul 37th Heavy Penal Court, which ruled for his release three days ago, ruled that he shall be arrested again.

"He was arrested in his attorneys' absence"

Speaking to bianet, attorney Güçlü Sevimli from the ÇHD has stated that Kozağaçlı was arrested in the absence of his attorneys:

"The Presiding Judge of the 37th Heavy Penal Court received a report; this being the case, the Presiding Judge of the 26th Heavy Penal Court chaired the court today. Before the hearing, the Presiding Judge stated that he had imposed a limit of three attorneys. We wanted to talk to him to object to this decision, but the judge said, 'I am not listening to you. Keep quiet.'

"We, as attorneys, attended the hearing not as attorneys, but as viewers and sat among the audience. Therefore, officially, Selçuk Kozağaçlı was not represented by an attorney. This situation is not only contrary to law, but it also violates the Law on Criminal Court."

Order of 'Empty the courtroom' after verdict

Sevimli has also said that the judge did not let Kozağaçlı make his defence:

"The Presiding Judge also did not let Kozağaçlı speak and interrupted him. Just after that, the prosecutor announced his opinion that Kozağaçlı shall be arrested. Kozağaçlı was arrested at a hearing that lasted only 10 minutes.

"As soon as the Presiding Judge ruled for his arrest, he also ordered the police officers to 'empty the courtroom.'

"We were taken out of the courtroom by being battered."

They were released three days ago

Upon the objection to the release of the lawyers, who were previously in jail pending trial and were released three days ago, the lawyers Ahmet Mandacı, Engin Gökoğlu, Aycan Çiçek, Aytaç Ünsal and Behiç Aşçı were arrested again on the ground that "there is a strong criminal suspicion" and "arrest is proportional to the punishment expected to be given".

Selçuk Kozağaçlı, the Chair of the ÇHD, who went to İstanbul Courthouse in Çağlayan yesterday (September 16) upon the arrest warrant, was battered by the police and taken to the İstanbul Security Directorate.

Kozağaçlı was arrested and sent to prison today.

What happened?

Most of the lawyers, who are members of the Progressive Lawyers Association (ÇHD) and People's Law Bureau (HHB), were detained during the police raids against their bureaus on September 12, 2017, and were arrested on September 20. Kozağaçlı was arrested on November 13, 2017.

At their hearing held on September 14, 2018, the İstanbul 37th Heavy Penal Court ruled for the release of the lawyers Ahmet Mandacı, Aycan Çiçek, Ayşegül Çağatay, Aytaç Ünsal, Barkın Timtik, Behiç Aşçı, Didem Baydar Ünsal, Ebru Timtik, Engin Gökoğlu, Naciye Demir, Özgür Yılmaz, Selçuk Kozağaçlı, Süleyman Gökten, Şükriye Erden, Yağmur Ererken, Yaprak Türkmen and Zehra Özdemir.

The court ruled for their release with reference to their duration of arrest and legal precedents of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) and on the ground that the classification of the offence has changed and the defendants are lawyers and were arrested as a measure.

The arrest warrants issued for the fugitive lawyers Günay Dağ andOya Aslan, who have been tried in the same case, are still in effect.

The court also ruled that the lawyers shall be released on probation.

However, one day after the verdict of release issued for the lawyers, an arrest warrant was issued for them upon the objection of the Prosecutor's Office. As of September 17, five of the released lawyers were arrested again.

The next hearing of the lawyers will be held on February 19-20, 2019. (AS/SD)