“Dishonesty”. Socrates will have the opportunity to prove your innocence

Former Prime Minister José Sócrates accuses the Attorney General, Amadeu Guerra, of dishonesty, by denying that his judgment was an opportunity to prove his innocence-in an apparent inversion of the so-called “burden of proof.”

The Attorney General of the Republic (PGR), War amadeanswered this Friday to the criticisms of José Socrateswhich accuses him of defending, in an interview with, that he must be the former prime minister to prove his innocence.

“The prosecutor said that We need to give opportunity to engineer Socrates to prove his innocence. Now, he says he didn’t say What did you say: I didn’t say engineer José Sócrates I had to prove anything“, Points out the former prime minister.

“The first statement is irresponsible; The second is dishonest”The former Prime Minister considered this Friday, in a statement sent to Lusa.

In the brief reaction to today’s explanations of the Attorney General, Socrates also left A Council to Amadeu Guerra: “When in a hole, it is best Do not continue to excavate”.

In reaction to the criticism of José Sócrates, the Attorney General of the Republic states that His statements were misunderstood, who never said that the former Prime Minister I had to prove your innocencebut that the judgment is the proper place for the proof of innocence.

“I did not say that engineer José Sócrates had to prove anything, Even if I had to prove your innocenceI did not mention that, said there would be a opportunity in trial to do the proof of innocence. Just that. To prove the innocence, he will do, if he wants, ”says the wanted.

“If the facts that the Public Prosecution Service invokes do not proveIt takes nothing more, ”clarifies Amadeu Guerra.

In Portuguese legislation, as in the generality of democratic regimes, the burden of proof of an accusation falls on the accuser – That is, it accuses that it has to prove the accusations imputed to the accused.

Objectively, in the observer, Amadeu Guerra verbalizes that the former prime minister will have the opportunity to test of innocence – and this is not a mere issue of semantics.

Eleven years after at Lisbon airport, the Marquis Operation’s trial took off on Thursday, which brings the former prime minister to court and 20 more defendants and has more than 650 witnesses.

Capital bleaching and tax fraud are at stake, for which the 21 defendants will be tried in this process.

For now, they are marked 53 Sessions Which extend until the end of this year, and in the future should be marked in the following and, during this trial will be heard 225 witnesses called by the Public Prosecution Service and about 20 calls by the defense of each of the 21 defendants.