Mário Cruz / Lusa
The former Prime Minister, José Sócrates
The court declined Socrates’ arguments, which claims that the judge’s impartiality is at stake. The former prime minister was still sentenced to a fine, with the court considering that he is trying to delay the process.
The Lisbon Court of Appeal rejected the request of former Prime Minister José Sócrates to AWARE SUSAN JUDGE DRYwhich conducts the judgment of Operation Marquis, as well as the request to refer the case to the Court of Justice of the European Union in Luxembourg.
The appeal, presented by the defense last week, was considered “manifestly unfounded” and resulted in a 1020 euros fine to the defendant by disturbance of the normal of justice, according to.
In the judgment released this Thursday, the judge judges were clear in criticizing the intention of the request, claiming not to see “another intention to submit this request manifestly unfounded other than to continue, repeatedly and incessantly, to prevent the normal course of the realization of justice”Despite severe criticism, the court chose not to apply the maximum fine provided by law, which can reach 2040 euros.
The argument of Socrates’s lawyer, Pedro Delille, maintained that the magistrate would be suffering external pressuresin particular from a working group of the Superior Council of Judiciary, created to monitor and accelerate complex legal proceedings such as Operation Marquis. However, according to the judgment, “no order, suggestion or attempt to influence was identified” and the judge’s performance may be evaluated during the course of the trial.
The magistrates of the Court of Appeal also questioned the fact that the request for removal not being extended to the other two judges that are part of the collective responsible for the trial, which reinforces the fragility of the defense argument.
José Sócrates began to be tried on July 3 at the Justice Campus in Lisbon, with the next session scheduled for Tuesday. The former ruler is the main defendant of Operation Marquis, a megaprocess that investigates economic crimes and corruption involving various public figures and business entities.
