Proceedings against Medenica for abuse of office concluded, verdict to be announced on October 31st

The repeated court proceedings against the former President of the Supreme Court of Montenegro, Vesna Medenica, concluded today at the Higher Court in Podgorica, with the closing arguments of the parties in the proceedings.

Judge Sonja Keković will announce the verdict on October 31st.

Medenica is accused of abuse of official position.

The Court of Appeal previously overturned the first-instance verdict that sentenced Medenica to six months in prison.

According to the indictment, she did not report that proceedings had been initiated against Judge Milosav Zekić.

The indictment alleges, among other things, that on February 18, 2019, Medenica, in her capacity as a public official, President of the Supreme Court of Montenegro and member of the Judicial Council, aware of her act and its prohibition, which she wanted to commit, by exceeding the limits of her official authority, obtained a benefit for Milosav Zekić, a judge of the Basic Court in Rožaje. In a way that, beyond her authority as President of the Supreme Court of Montenegro, in the case of the Judicial Administration IV-I-Su.br. 7/19, formed on the basis of a submission by a group of citizens, dated January 23, 2019, after receiving the requested information from Dr. Branko Vučković, President of the Basic Court in Kotor, in the document Posl.br. IV-1-Su 11/19 of 12. 02. 2019., which stated that criminal proceedings were being conducted before that court, among others, against the defendant Milosav Zekić, in the case with the business code K.br. 159/18/18, for the criminal offenses of endangering security under Article 168, paragraph 1 of the Criminal Code of Montenegro and slight bodily harm under Article 152, paragraph 2, in connection with paragraph 1 of the Criminal Code of Montenegro, pursuant to the indictment of the Basic State Prosecutor's Office in Kotor, Kt.br. 387/17, dated 04.06.2018. Along with which act, she was also provided with a copy of the indictment of the Basic State Prosecutor's Office in Kotor, Kt.br. 387/17, dated 04.06.2018.

As stated in the indictment, Medenica stated in an official note on the inner cover of file IV- I Su no. 7/19 that "until the completion of the procedure, I do not find it appropriate and justified to take any action, a family dispute", and filed the case. In doing so, she did not inform the President of the Judicial Council and other members of the Judicial Council that she had made a decision that it was not appropriate and justified to take any action in relation to Judge Milosav Zekić, although she was aware that criminal proceedings had been initiated against him for criminal offenses that make him unworthy of exercising judicial office. Knowing that the decision on whether the legal conditions for the temporary suspension of a judge from office are met is not within her jurisdiction as the President of the Supreme Court of Montenegro, but, pursuant to the provisions of Article 121, paragraph 3 of the Law on the Judicial Council and Judges, is within the jurisdiction of the Judicial Council, in which Vesna Medenica, as a member, had the sole authority to express her opinion on the matter, and not to make a decision on behalf of the entire collective body of the Judicial Council. As a result, she obtained a benefit for Judge Milosav Zekić in the form of not being removed from the exercise of judicial office and exercising the right to full salary in the period from February 18, 2019, to July 20, 2020, when his resignation was declared at his request. During that period, he was only entitled to a reduced portion of his salary because the legal conditions for temporary suspension from duty were met, and it also provided him with the benefit of the privilege of performing judicial duties and protecting his reputation, although during the aforementioned period, he could not perform that function.