The Supreme Court of Kosovo PML. KZZ. no. 322/2016 – Drenica II

The Supreme Court of Kosovo PML. KZZ. no. 322/2016 – Drenica II

The Supreme Court of Kosovo deliberated and voted on 19 July 2017 with reference to 11 Requests for Protection of Legality all filed against the judgment of the Basic Court of Mitrovica dated 27 May 2015 in case no. P 58/14 and the judgment of the Court of Appeals dated 14 September 2016 in case no. PAKR 456/15 by the respective defence counsels on behalf of the defendants and by two of the defendants jointly. The Supreme Court of Kosovo rejected all Requests for Protection of Legality as ungrounded.

The Supreme Court of Kosovo rejected the procedural requests’ of the defence. The Supreme Court established that the Criminal Procedure Code of Kosovo (CPC) does not comprise a procedural possibility for the Supreme Court to hold an open session with the parties present or to conduct a hearing in order to take new evidence. The Supreme Court rejected allegations in relation to the composition of the panel as the objections were not made according to the CPC. The Supreme Court rejected allegations in regard to hostile witness concept by agreeing with the decisions of the lower courts that the CPC does not know this concept as such but at same stating that the concept is in line with duties set both to court and to Presiding Judge by the CPC.

All the other allegations were rejected as ungrounded.