Quashing of Verdict of Release Requested

The Defence of Savo Babic proposed to the Court to reject the Prosecution’s appeal as unfounded and confirm the verdict of release pronounced on December 18, 2013.
 
The first instance Chamber acquitted Babic, former Commander of military police with the Republika Srpska Army, VRS, in Bratunac, of the charges that he ordered, committed and failed to prevent the detention of non-Serb civilians in the “Vuk Karadzic” school building in Bratunac in May 1992. According to the charges, the detained civilians were mistreated, while some of them were killed.
Prosecutor Predrag Tomic said that Babic undertook those actions within a widespread and systematic attack.  

“He knew very well what was happening in the school building. The building was in the immediate vicinity of the Police Station. He did nothing to save those people. Many witnesses confirmed that he used to come to the school accompanied by Goran Zekic’s father, who threatened them that he would kill them, blaming them for the death of his son. Savo Babic listened to all that and knew what would happen to those people once he left,” Tomic said.
 
He said that the Prosecution had proved that Babic had the authority to improve the conditions in which the detainees were held.

“Savo Babic was well informed about the murders and mistreatments. Screams and gunshots could be heard both during the day and night,” Tomic said.  

He pointed out that witnesses confirmed that military policemen guarded the school building and a hangar next to it, to which Bosniaks were taken and killed.
 
According to the Prosecutor, some of the witnesses changed their statements in order to diminish the indictee’s responsibility, adding that the Court did not assess their statements given during the investigation.

Petko Pavlovic, Defence attorney of the indictee, said that the Prosecution had proven nothing during the first instance trial.  

“The Prosecution filed the indictment on the basis of an imprecise and incomplete investigation. Presenting her introductory statement, the then Prosecutor said that nobody had been tried even though 20 years had passed and that somebody had to be tried. At that time it became clear to me that Savo Babic’s name was chosen randomly,” Pavlovic said.

He pointed out that members of the Crisis Committee could make decisions regarding the happenings in the school building and that there was no evidence that military policemen guarded the school.   

“Brane, the Macedonian and the person from Milic gave approvals for entering the school building,” Pavlovic said.  
 
The Appellate Chamber of the Court of BiH will render a decision at a later stage.