site.bta Union of Judges Lashes out at Prosecutor General after He Blames Courts for Too Many Acquittals

Union of Judges Lashes out at  Prosecutor General after He Blames Courts for Too Many Acquittals

Sofia, March 9 (BTA) - The Union of Judges in Bulgaria Wednesday lashed out at Prosecutor General Sotir Tsatsarov after he suggested in a Bulgarian National Television interview that the lawcourts are to blame for having an excessive number of acquittals. To say that the court has "a blame" for acquittals or for sentences undermines confidence in the court, goes against key principles and suggests that the court is supposed to take sides - in this case the prosecutor, the Union said in an open letter. "This is unacceptable even for the minimum standards called for by the rule of law," the statement goes.

In the television interview Tuesday, the Prosecutor General said that in many cases which ended with an acquittal the prosecutors had done their job. "The acquittals have become way too many and the prosecutors are not the ones who pass the judgments. It was high time that everybody took their responsibility. My colleagues [in the prosecution offices] and myself are fully aware of our responsibility and the level of public mistrust in us. But the prosecutors are not the only ones in the judiciary: there are also investigators and judges. Everybody should be held accountable for what they do. It is a shared responsibility. Stop putting all the blame on the prosecutors."

Tsatsarov said in conclusion that the prosecutors are doing their job well but this does not match "the political plans of some people".

The Union of Judges says in its statement that the court is not a fighter against crime nor does it work in a team with prosecutors helping them to overcome weaknesses in their cases. "The court is not an aide to the prosecutor. The court is an arbiter and to do its job well it needs to be independent and objective. [...] In this line of reasoning, the position expressed by the Prosecutor General is dangerous for democracy because it ascribes a role to the court which it should not have," the statement goes.