The second hearing of the trial of T24 reporter Can Öztürk and 14 students who were detained while covering protests at Boğaziçi University was held on January 12 at Istanbul 69th Criminal Court of First Instance. The hearing, which was moved to the 21st Heavy Penal Court due to insufficient space, did not allow members of the press, relatives of the defendants, or national and international observers into the courtroom. The judge responded to the lawyers’ objections by saying, “I am not obliged to.” The lawyers stated that they were frequently interrupted during their defense and were not allowed to ask direct questions to the police officers who were the plaintiffs. Batıkan Erkoç, a lawyer from the MLSA Legal Unit, stated that the indictment was inadequately prepared and that the court was not acting impartially. The court decided to add some files to the case and postponed the hearing until April 27.
January 12, 2026
MLSA Turkey