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Albania’s
Supreme Court reinstates a right violated in the
albanian judicial system
23.04.2009
Yesterday, on 22.04.2009, the
Supreme Court of the Republic of Albania
reviewed the recourse presented by lawyers of
the Albanian Helsinki Committee (AHC) on behalf
of the citizen Xh. Hoxha, who was being
adjudicated for the second time for the same
criminal offense.
After finding the arguments
presented by Albanian Helsinki Committee lawyers
as founded, the Penal College of the Supreme
Court, decided to annul decisions nor. 23, dated
25.04.2008 of the Court of Appeals for Serious
Crimes, and decision no. 53, dated 23.11.2007 of
the Court of First Instance for Serious Crimes
and the release of Xh.Hoxha because his criminal
offense had already been adjudicated.
The Supreme Court found that the
penal case represented by AHC featured a
violation of one of the most important
constitutional principles: the principle of
non-adjudication two times for the same offense
(principle bis in idem).
AHC, in the context of its
monitoring mission at one institution for
serving prison terms, learned that citizen Xh.
Hoxha (inter alia D. Davide), was being
adjudicated by the Court of Serious Crimes for
an offense on which a foreign court had issued a
final penal ruling.
After finding this fact, the
Albanian Helsinki Committee, in the context of
its program to offer free legal aid for flagrant
cases of violations of human rights, dealt with
the case for a long time and initially provided
relevant legal counseling and then represented
the case of Xh. Hoxha in front of the Supreme
Court, seeking the reinstatement of human rights
in the context of the principle of an
adjudicated case.
AHC appreciates the decision made
by the Supreme Court of the Republic of Albania
and expresses the belief that Albanian courts
will respect constitutional principles and will
reinstate them any time violations thereof are
encountered, even when these violatiosn are
committed by justice bodies.
AHC will continue to protect the
citizens’ rights violated by state institutions,
aiming not only at the reinstatement of violated
rights, but also at contributing to the creation
of good practices that respect human rights and
develop Albanian jurisprudence.
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