Lithuania / Kaunas Regional Court / Criminal case No. 1A-531-530/2017 /
Country
Lithuania
Year
Decision/ruling/judgment date
Incident(s) concerned/related
Related Bias motivation
Groups affected
Court/Body type
Court/Body
Key facts of the case
The case id about violence and incitement to hatred in a car lot against a migrant. Accused persons shouted racial slurs against the victim, told him to return to the country of origin, threatened to pull out a gun, and two times slapped his face and hitted leg.
Main reasoning/argumentation
Court established all the facts of case and there were no doubts of accused persons actions, so there were no legal problems for the court to convict the accussed persons
Is the case related to the application of the Framework Decision on Racism and Xenophobia, the Racial Equality Directive?
Key issues (concepts, interpretations) clarified by the case
As there were no doubts of incitement to hatred and violence againts a victim and there were clear facts provided, court didn't had any legal problems of qualification of the crime.
Results (sanctions, outcome) and key consequences or implications of the case
One of accused person was convicted by articles 170 (incitement to hatred) and 284 (public disturbance) of Penal code and sentenced to limitation of freedom (to be at home from 22.00 till 6.00) for 2 years and do 120 hours of public work. Another accused person was convicted only by article 170 of Penal code and sentenced to limitation of freedom (to be at home from 22.00 till 6.00) for 1 year 8 months and do 120 hours of public work.
Key quotation in original language and its unofficial translation into English with reference details
"Teisėjų kolegijai nekyla abejonių dėl to, kad išsakyti tokie žodžiai lietuvių kalboje turi grasinantį, neigiamą, niekinamą rasistinį pobūdį, jie buvo skirti konkrečiam asmeniui – nukentėjusiajam ir tiesiogiai siejami su nukentėjusio asmens tamsesne odos spalva, siekiant iš jo tyčiotis, jį diskriminuoti, bandyta prieš jį smurtauti ar fiziškai su juo susidoroti. / The panel of the judges did not have doubts that in Lithuanian language the expressed words have frightening, negative and disdained racist nature, they were addressed to the concrete person – victim and explicitly related to the person’s dark skin, aiming at bullying, discriminating, attempting to use violence or physically beat him. "
"Court do not have doubts that statments of accused persons in lithuanian language have threatining, negative, racist meaning, and they where adressed to concrete person – victim and directly where connected with color of the skin of the victim, trying to mock and discriminate him, attempting to deal violence and cope physically "