The lawsuit filed against 20 lawyers from the Contemporary Lawyers Association (ÇHD) and People’s Legal Bureau (HHB), six of them arrested in remand, due to “illegal organization membership” and “illegal organization management,” was concluded. ÇHD and HHB were previously shut down with emergency decrees. Istanbul 37th Assize Court announced the verdict without receiving the defense statements of the defendants and issued imprisonment sentences varying between 18 years and nine months and 3 years, 1 month and 15 days against 18 lawyers.
Barkın Timtik was sentenced to 18 years and nine months of imprisonment due to “establishing and managing an illegal organization.” Selçuk Kozağaçlı was sentenced to 10 years and 15 months, Özgür Yılmaz and Ebru Timtik were sentenced to 13 years and 6 months each, Behiç Aşçı and Şükriye Erden were sentenced to 12 years each; Engin Gökoğlu, Süleyman Gökten and Aytaç Ünsal were sentenced to 10 years and six months each; Ayçan Çiçek and Naciye Demir to nine years each and Ezgi Çakır was sentenced to eight years of imprisonment due to “illegal organization membership.” Ahmet Mandacı and Zehra Özdemir were sentenced to 3 years, 1 months and 15 days of imprisonment each due to “willfully aiding and abetting an illegal organization;” Ayşegül Çağatay, Yağmur Ereren, Didem Baydar Ünsal, Yaprak Türkmen were sentenced to 3 years and nine months of imprisonment each with the same charge. The court issued six defendants to remain arrested and issued warrants against six defendants.
20.03.2019
bianet.org