Court of Cassation overturns verdict against 16 academics

The 3rd Criminal Chamber of the Court of Cassation overturned the 6-year and 8-month prison sentence given to Prof. Dr. Vedat Demir and 16 other academics for “illegal organization membership” and sent the file to Istanbul 14th Assize Court for retrial. With the Decree Law No. 672, the judicial process against academic Demir, who was dismissed from his position at Istanbul University Faculty of Communication, started with the “witch hunt” conducted at universities during the State of Emergency, and his columns, his dismissal with the State of Emergency Decree Law, and his phone calls with his colleagues were cited as grounds for the charges. In addition, Akın Gürlek, who has signed many controversial decisions and is currently the Deputy Minister of Justice, was appointed as the presiding judge at the final hearing of the case.