Savonea says prosecutors are to blame

Judge Lia Savonea, the only candidate for the position of president of the High Court of Cassation and Justice, argues that, frequently, in the public space, it is found that the failures of the prosecutors for the weak indictments are imputed to the court, the confusion seriously affecting the act of justice.

Lia Savonea has taken more, over time, controversial decisions, including the declaration of the indictment in the file of the ‘Revolution’ in which Ion Iliescu is judged and the re-examination of the case in which Mario Iorgulescu had a definitive conviction of 13 years and 8 months imprisonment, after driving and drunk.

The Superior Council of Magistracy published, on Tuesday, the project on the exercise of the specific duties of the management position submitted by Judge Lia Savonea, the only candidate to register for the position of president of the High Court of Cassation and Justice.

The judge from the High Court notes in the project that part of the public ‘does not have a clear understanding’ of the roles and responsibilities of the institutions, so that ‘failures’ are attributed to the court, not infrequently, ‘without the basis’.

‘Regardless of the object of a file, with a larger or smaller stake, and regardless of the subject, the judges do not decide according to personal sympathies, but apply the provisions of the Civil Code, Criminal Code or the provisions of administrative law, or from another subject. When public information is incomplete or, moreover, when they are presented truncated or even tendentious, the public tends to judge emotional cases, ‘says the magistrate.

It adds that the annulment of an administrative act of a public authority in the courts of litigation is the expression that ‘the law is above any authority’, regardless of its level, represents the sanction of an excess of power, not abusive approach of justice ‘.

Likewise, the annulment of a contract, the causes by which unfair competition, a commercial fraud, theft from the payment of taxes due, the conviction for corruption acts are the expression of restoring the violated legal balance, whether an abuse of authority, a contractual misunderstanding or a fraud, acts in the law.

‘In criminal matters, for example, we find that, in the public space, the failures of the prosecutors for weak indictments, insufficient evidence or defective criminal investigations are imposed on the court. The confusion between the role of the accuser and that of the judge seriously affects confidence in the act of justice. The judge is not an executor of the indictment, but a guarantor of legality and an impartial arbitrator who decides exclusively on the basis of the evidence administered legally. It is fundamental for public opinion to understand that the payment of an defendant does not mean the ‘weakness’ of the court, but, on the contrary, reflects the application of the principle of presumption of innocence and the standard of evidence ‘beyond any reasonable doubt’. The transfer of the responsibility of the failure of the accusation over the court is a dangerous process because it weakens the judge’s authority and discourages independence, ‘stresses the judge.

According to her, public opinion is influenced before verdict when statements or images that suggest guilt are provided.

‘A pressure is created that generates a tense climate, and the prejudices created in the public space can affect the behavior of the participants. How to get to such a point? By the option of the criminal prosecution bodies, excessive sometimes, from the very beginning of the criminal investigation, especially in cases where there is a public, correct, indisputable stake, to combat illicit behaviors. When the completion of such a file is made in a different way from the amplified expectations, beyond the limit of the debates accepted in a democratic society, the public is more likely to identify a problem in the court area ‘, notes the judge in the project.

On May 19, the Superior Council of Magistracy announced the initiation of the procedure regarding the appointment of a new head of the ICCJ.

According to the announcement published on the institution’s website, the deadline for submitting the candidates for the position of president of the Supreme Court at the Judges Section of the Superior Council of Magistracy was until Monday, and, starting June 23, the section may order the analysis of the candidates and the approval of the interview for the candidates.

The mandate of the current president of the supreme court, Corina Corbu, ceases in mid -September.

Lia Savonea promoted as a judge at the Supreme Court – the criminal section in the spring of 2023, after, previously, he held the position of president of the Bucharest Court of Appeal.

She was a member of the Superior Council of Magistracy in the previous composition, holding the position of president of the SCM in 2019.