The seventh hearing of R.Ç. case has been held this morning in the southwestern province of Diyarbakır with three suspects - R.Ç.’s father and 2 uncles - who were charged with murder of 17 year old family member for being homosexual. While prosecutors have yet to submit their comments, the court ordered on the continuation of suspects’ imprisonment. Held by a temporary judge panel for the last two hearings, the case will be held on December 5.
“The hearing were scheduled more frequently before. I don’t know why it is postponed till late this time,” said advocate Fırat Söyle. He followed the case on behalf of SPoD.
“Defendant attorneys said their clients are innocent and had nothing to do with the death of R.Ç. They said the incident happened by accident. They requested the release of their clients pending a trial,” Söyle said.
He also said they came up with the following request:
“Previously, R.Ç.’s mother, sister and brother became a part of the trial, saying that they were also affected. As they withdrew their complaints later on, we demanded that they shouldn’t be called with this title anymore. The court, however, has yet to decide on that matter. We will keep an extensive eye on the matter in the next hearing. A mother as a victim can’t ask for the pending trial of suspects. This is against penal regulations. The trial resumed with this situation.”
Söyle also shared his insights on the future of the trial:
“The prosecutor will submit his comments on December 5. He has yet to submit it, because he changed mind on a previous one. For the past three trials, we are waiting for comments. My guess is that it will be submitted on the next trial and then the case will be postponed to February/March 2014 for the final hearing.”
What happened?
In July 2012, R.Ç (17) has been murdered in Diyarbakır province.
On June 28, the defense attorney requested the release of his client for pending trial, saying that “no father would want to kill their sons” - a demand reiterated by other defendants who are R.Ç. relatives as well.
On May 24 R.Ç.’s father pleaded guilty, saying that “I killed him”. He went on saying that he had an argument with his son and shot him accidentally while hitting him with the back of licensed pistol. He later on abandoned his son’s dead body on the road. (EK/EKN/BM)
* Click here to read the original article in Turkish.
