Attempts to put the judge under control. Retired judge comments on PGO's refusal to open proceedings against Hetmantsev

The refusal of the Prosecutor General's Office to open criminal proceedings on the statement of Vitaliy Tsyktych, a judge of the Shevchenkivskyi District Court of Kyiv, about pressure on him from the head of the Rada's tax committee, Danylo Hetmantsev, is an attempt to put the judge under control. This opinion was expressed in an exclusive commentary to UNN by retired judge of the Supreme Administrative Court of Ukraine Oleksandr Sytnikov.

Details

Earlier, Danylo Hetmantsev, the head of the Rada's tax committee, published several posts on his Telegram channel calling on the public to put pressure on the court and openly criticizing the judges' decisions. Judge Vitaliy Tsyktych of the Shevchenkivskyi District Court of Kyiv appealed to the High Council of Justice and the Office of the Prosecutor General with a statement about pressure from Hetmantsev and the MP's attempts to influence the court's decisions and interfere in its activities. After that, Hetmantsev published another post in which he criticized the decision of the panel of judges of the Dnipro District Administrative Court.

They admitted that the NBU had made an illegal decision to revoke the license and start liquidation of Concord Bank. This is probably how Hetmantsev wanted to influence the judges who would consider the NBU's appeal.

Judge Ciktic told UNNthat the Office of the Prosecutor General refused to open criminal proceedings on his application. 

I think that if they do not open a case, it is an attempt to put the judge under control... not opening a case is also a kind of pressure. According to him, in cases of pressure, judges should turn to the HCJ to resolve issues through this body. After all, according to Sytnikov, the HCJ has much more leverage than the Council of Judges or just a judge

I think that if the case is not initiated, it is an attempt to put the judge under control... not initiating the case is also a certain pressure.

According to him, in cases of pressure, judges should turn to the HCJ to resolve issues through this body. After all, according to Sytnikov, the HCJ has much more leverage than the Council of Judges or just a judge

At the same time, he is convinced that there is a kind of struggle between judges and law enforcement officers for power and attention in Ukraine.

As they say, there is a constant struggle for power, for attention, between the court and the prosecutor's office. And while there used to be a little bit of corporate solidarity, where they opened proceedings on judges' applications and defended each other, now it's the opposite - divide and conquer. In other words, the prosecutor's office is trying to take over. They can't get rid of this Soviet complex of a supervisory organization. And they have been trying to bring it back all along, so that they have it (supervision - ed.)

Recall

Earlier, the president of the All-Ukrainian Association of Retired Judges, Denys Neviadomskyi, emphasized that Hetmantsev violates the Criminal Code of Ukrainewith his calls . According to him, the MP, in particular, calls for interference in the activities of the court and violates the presumption of innocence.

Lawyer Dmytro Kasyanenko noted that Hetmantsev's post could be regarded as pressure on the judge and influence on his decision. Lawyer Serhiy Lysenko believes that Hetmantsev is trying to influence the court through public opinion and is taking on the role of a judge, determining which decision of Themis will be legal in the criminal proceedings on illegal tobacco.