Istanbul 40th Criminal Court of First Instance acquitted 12 of 16 people tried on a charge of “insulting the President” over the protests in Saraçhane on 25 March 2025 and sentenced four to 11 months and 20 days in prison each. The court deferred the announcement of the verdict for the four defendants and imposed a five-year supervision period. At the fifth hearing, the prosecutor requested punishment for four people based on a lip-movement analysis in an expert report. The report stated that it could not be established that the other 12 had chanted the slogan cited in the charge. Defense lawyers argued that the footage had been obtained unlawfully, that the sounds could not be identified and that a conviction could not be based solely on lip movements. The court acquitted 12 people on the grounds that the offense had not been proven.
2 October 2026
Cumhuriyet