High Council of Justice “punished” with advanced training the judge who pursued AutoMaidan activists

The High Council of Justice (HCJ) decided to send Judge of Podolsky District Court of Kyiv Svitlana Bohinkevych, who is related to the prosecution of Euromaidan activists, for the professional development course.

As reported by Roman Maselko, the lawyer of AutoMaidan, on his Facebook page.

According to him, on March 31, the First Disciplinary Chamber of the HCJ decided to impose a disciplinary penalty in the form of a temporary suspension from the delivery of justice for 2 months with deprivation of the right to receive additional payments to the official salary. In addition, the HCJ decided to send the judge to the National School of Judges of Ukraine so that she could undergo a professional development course with subsequent qualification assessment to confirm the ability to deliver justice.

Roman Maselko noted that in this way the High Council of Justice “has established gross violations on the part of the judge, but instead of dismissing her, she will be directed to study at the School of Judges”. While, during all this time, Svitlana Bohinkevych will continue to receive salary only without salary increment, resents the lawyer of AutoMaidain.

“Judge Bohinkevych considered 3 cases against drivers, who went to Mezhyhirya Residence in December 2013. She revoked their driving licenses without any proof of their guilt. One of the drivers was not even at the place, where he allegedly violated something”, – said Roman Maselko.

He is convinced that the HCJ “stubbornly ignores the facts that the judges issued such decisions not because of a lack of qualification, but under pressure and by order of the Presidential Administration”.

“The High Council of Justice covers these facts and persistently convinces that it happened because “judges were incompetent”, and therefore, wants to preserve the power of authorities to influence the judges”, – he said.

As a reminder, on March 24, the High Council of Judges refused to dismiss Victor Kitsyuk, Judge of the Pecherskyi District Court of Kyiv, due to the expiry of the statute of limitations. The judge confirmed that his own sister was an assistant to Inna Otrosh, Chairman of the Pecherskyi District Court. And she had the power to carry out automatic distribution of cases. The investigators established that an intervention had been made to the automated system. According to Roman Maselko, all of the AutoMaidan cases were considered by judges Victor Kitsyuk and Oksana Tsarevich.

Larisa Golnik, Judge of the Oktyabrsky District Court of Poltava, called on the judiciary to self-renewal by listening to well-founded claims of the public and journalists.