Appellate Verdict

SUD BOSNE I HERCEGOVINE СУД БОСНЕ И ХЕРЦЕГОВИНЕ Number: X-KRŽ-05/24 Date: 9 September 2009 Before: Judge Tihomir Lukes, Presiding Judge Azra Miletić, Reporting Judge Judge John Fields, Member of the Panel PROSECUTOR’S OFFICE OF BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA v. MILOŠ STUPAR, MILENKO TRIFUNOVIĆ, BRANO DŽINIĆ, ALEKSANDAR RADOVANOVIĆ, SLOBODAN JAKOVLJEVIĆ, BRANISLAV MEDAN AND MILOVAN MATIĆ APPELLATE VERDICT Counsel for the Prosecutor’s Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina: Ibro Bulić Defense Counsels for the Appellant Miloš Stupar: Ozrenka Jakšić and Radivoje Lazarević Defense Counsels for the Appellant Milenko Trifunović: Rade Golić and Petko Pavlović Defense Counsels for the Appellant Brano Džinić: Suzana Tomanović and Boriša Ilić Defense Counsels for the Appellant Aleksandar Radovanović: Dragan Gotovac and Nada Mandić Defense Counsels for the Appellant Slobodan Jakovljević: Boško Čegar and Slavko Ašćerić Defense Counsels for the Appellant Branislav Medan: Borislav Jamina and Zorna Kisin Defense Counsles for the Appellant Milovan Matića: Miloš Perić and Ratko Jovičić Kraljice Jelene br. 88, 71 000 Sarajevo, Bosna i Hercegovina, Tel: 033 707 100, Faks: 033 707 225 Краљице Јелене бр. 88, 71 000 Сарајево, Босна и Херцеговина, Тел: 033 707 100, Факс: 033 707 225 CONTENTS INTRODUCTION,OPERATIVE PART………..………………………………. 3 1.REASONING (PROCEDURAL HISTORY)…………………………………...6 2. GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS………………………………………………9 3. APPEAL OF THE BIH PROSECUTOR'S OFFICE…...……………………..9 -Essential Violations of the Criminal Procedure…..……………………………..10 -Erroneously and Incompletely Established State of Facts...……………………11 4. APPEAL OF DEFENSE COUNSELS FOR THE ACCUSED MILOŠ STUPAR ....14 5.APPEALS OF THE ACCUSED MILENKO TRIFUNOVIĆ, BRANO DŽINIĆ, ALEKSANDAR RADOVANOVIĆ, SLOBODAN JAKOVLJEVIĆ AND BRANISLAV MEDAN...............................................................................................................................16 - Essential Violations of Criminal Procedure……………………………….…...16 - Erroneously and Incompletely Established State of Facts..………………….. 50 5.III. VIOLATIONS OF THE CRIMINAL CODE UNDER ARTICLE 298 THE CPC OF BiH…………………………………………………………………………………….72 6. DECISION ON CRIMINAL SANCTION............................................................87 Kraljice Jelene br. 88, 71 000 Sarajevo, Bosna i Hercegovina, Tel: 033 707 100, Faks: 033 707 225 2 Краљице Јелене бр. 88, 71 000 Сарајево, Босна и Херцеговина, Тел: 033 707 100, Факс: 033 707 225 Number: X-KRŽ-05/24 Sarajevo, 9 September 2009 IN THE NAME OF BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA! The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Section I for War Crimes, sitting on the Appellate Panel comprising Judge Tihomir Lukes as the Presiding Judge, and Judges Azra Miletić and John Fields, as members of the Panel, with the participation of Legal Officer Vahida-Ramić Sanida as minutes-taker, in the criminal case against the Accused Miloš Stupar, for the criminal offence of Genocide in violation of Article 171(a) in conjunction with Article 29 and 180(2) of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC of BiH), and Milenko Trifunović, Brano Džinić, Aleksandar Radovanović, Slobodan Jakovljević, Branislav Medan and Milovan Matić, for the criminal offence of Genocide in violation of Article 171(a) in conjunction with Article 29 and 180(1) of the CC of BiH, deciding upon the appeal of the Prosecutor’s Office of BiH, and the appeals by the Defense Counsels for the Accused Miloš Stupar, lawyer Ozrenka Jakšić and lawyer Radivoje Lazarević, Accused Milenko Trifunović, lawyer Rade Golić, Accused Brano Džinić, lawyer Suzana Tomanović, Accused Aleksandar Radovanović, lawyer Dragan Gotovac, Accused Slobodan Jakovljević, lawyer Boško Čegar, appeal by the Accused Branislav Medan, and the appeal by his Defense Counsel, lawyer Borislav Jamina, filed from the Verdict of the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina number: X- KR-05/24 of 29 July 2008, at the Panel session held on 9 September 2009, in the presence of the Prosecutor of the Prosecutor’s Office of BiH, Ibro Bulić, the Accused and their Defense Counsels, rendered the following: V E R D I C T The appeal of the Prosecutor with the Prosecutor’s Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina is refused as ungrounded and the Verdict of the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina, number X- KR-05/24 of 29 July 2008, with regard to the Accused Milovan Matić, is upheld. The appeal of the Defense Counsel for the Accused Miloš Stupar is granted, therefore, the Verdict of the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina, number X-KR-05/24 of 29 July 2008, with regard to this Accused is revoked and a retrial before the Appellate Panel of Section I of the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina is ordered. The appeals of the Defence Counsels for the Accused Milenko Trifunović, Brano Džinić, Aleksandar Radovanović, Slobodan Jakovljević, Branislav Medan and the Accused Branislav Medan in person, are granted in part, therefore, with regard to the referenced Accused persons, the Verdict of the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina number X-KR-05/24 of 29 July 2008, is revised and it is hereby ruled as follows: Kraljice Jelene br. 88, 71 000 Sarajevo, Bosna i Hercegovina, Tel: 033 707 100, Faks: 033 707 225 3 Краљице Јелене бр. 88, 71 000 Сарајево, Босна и Херцеговина, Тел: 033 707 100, Факс: 033 707 225 ACCUSED: Milenko Trifunović, a.k.a. Čop, son of Ivan and Milojka nee Obradović, born on 7 January 1967 in the village of Kostolomci, Srebrenica Municipality, residing in …, of … ethnicity, citizen of …, completed Secondary Vocational Trade School, unemployed, married, father of three minors, served the Army in 1987 in Peć and Prizren, with no military rank or medal, registered in military records of Srebrenica, indigent, no other criminal proceedings are being conducted against him, with no previous conviction, Brano Džinić a.k.a. Čupo, son of Ratomir and Dragica nee Erkić, born on 28 June 1974 in the village of Jelačići, Kladanj Municipality, residing in …, of … ethnicity, citizen of …, police officer by profession, single, no children, with no previous conviction, no other criminal proceedings are being conducted against him, Aleksandar Radovanović, a.k.a. Aca, son of Ljubiša and Jela, nee Dragišević, born on 20 June 1973 in …, where he is holding permanent residence, of … ethnicity, citizen of …, police officer by profession, completed secondary education, married, father of one child, with no previous conviction, no other criminal proceedings are being conducted against him, Slobodan Jakovljević, a.k.a. Boban, son of Dobrislav and Kosa, born on 9 January 1964 in the village of Kušići, Srebrenica Municipality, residing in …, of … ethnicity, citizen of …, unemployed, married, father of three, indigent, with no previous conviction, no other criminal proceedings are being conducted against him, Branislav Medan, a.k.a. Bane, son of Risto and Marta, nee Milić, born on 24 March 1965 in Dubrovnik, residing in …, of … ethnicity, citizen of …, worker by profession, completed elementary education, unemployed, widower, no children, indigent, served the Army service, with no previous conviction, no other criminal proceedings are being conducted against him, ARE FOUND GUILTY Inasmuch as: Milenko Trifunović, in his capacity as Commander of the 3rd Skelani Platoon as a constituent element of the 2nd Šekovići Special Police Detachment, which he commanded, Aleksandar Radovanović, Slobodan Jakovljević, Branislav Medan, as special police officers within the same Platoon, Brano Džinić as a special police officer in the 2nd Šekovići Special Police Detachment, together with other members of the Army of Republika Srpska (VRS) and the Ministry of the Interior of Republika Srpska, having participated in capturing of a large number of Bosniak men who, after the fall of the Safe Area of Srebrenica and its complete occupation by the forces of the Army of Republika Srpska, endeavored to leave the protected zone of Srebrenica on which occasion Trifunović previously encouraged and invited them to surrender, which many of them did as they were promised that they would be interrogated and exchanged, yet their personal papers and other personal belongings were seized, they were left without food, water and medical aid although many of them were seriously wounded, at the same time witnessing that the remaining Bosniak civilian population, about 25,000 mainly women and children were transported by trucks outside the Safe Zone of Kraljice Jelene br. 88, 71 000 Sarajevo, Bosna i Hercegovina, Tel: 033 707 100, Faks: 033 707 225 4 Краљице Јелене бр. 88, 71 000 Сарајево, Босна и Херцеговина, Тел: 033 707 100, Факс: 033 707 225 Srebrenica, on 13 July 1995, escorted a column of the captured Bosniak men to the warehouse of the Farming Cooperative Kravica and, together with other captured Bosniak men who had been bused to the warehouse, more than one thousand of them, and imprisoned them in the warehouse of the farming cooperative and killed them in early evening hours in a way that Milenko Trifunović and Aleksandar Radovanović fired their automatic rifles at the captives, Brano Džinić threw hand grenades at them, and Slobodan Jakovljević and Branislav Medan took positions at the rear of the warehouse standing guard and preventing any escape of the captives through the windows. T h e r e f o r e, by killing members of a group of Bosniaks, they aided in their extermination in part as a national, ethnic and religious group. W h e r e b y: They committed the criminal offense of – Genocide in violation of Article 171(a) of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina, in conjunction with Article

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