Following the open court session, the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina Appellate Division Panel rendered and on 10 September 2010 dispatched the Appellate Verdict by which it dismisses as unfounded the appeals by the Prosecutor’s Office of BiH and defense counsel for the accused Novak Đukić, and upheld the Trial Verdict of 12 June 2009 in its entirety.

 

By the Court of BiH Trial Verdict, the accused Novak Đukić was found guilty of War Crimes against Civilians in violation of Article 173(1)a) and b) of the Criminal Code of BiH (CC BiH) in conjunction with Article 180(1) of the CC BiH. The Trial Verdict sentenced Đukić to a long-term imprisonment of 25 years.

 

The Prosecutor and the defense counsel for the accused Đukić filed their respective appeals in a timely manner. The Prosecutor’s Office of BiH contested the Trial Verdict in the part related to the criminal sanction and the decision on the costs of the criminal proceedings. It moved the Appellate Panel to grant the appeal in as well founded its entirety and modify the contested Verdict regarding the decision on sanction and the decision on the costs of the criminal proceedings, so as to sentence the accused Novak Đukić to a prison term longer than 25 years and oblige him to bear the costs of the criminal proceedings.

 

The defense counsel for the accused Đukić also filed his appeal on the grounds of essential violations of the criminal procedure provisions, violation of the criminal code to the detriment of the accused, and the erroneously and incompletely established state of facts. The defense counsel moved the Panel to grant the appeal, modify the contested Verdict and acquit the accused of the charges, or to rescind the Verdict and schedule a re-trial which would result in another verdict.

 

The Appellate Panel held and open-court session, when the parties to the proceedings presented their appeals, and after the review of the Trial Verdict in terms of the appeals it found that the appeals were ill-founded.

 

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