The terrible lawyers: Why Georgia's judiciary is digging its own grave

Marika Arevadze - Member of the Political Council of the party 'Akhali'

Tiflis24 continues its coverage of the crisis of trust in the judiciary – about how and why the Georgian judicial system is losing trust. The "List of Terrible Lawyers" refers to those judges who make their decisions not according to law and conscience, but out of political motives. This time, we interviewed Marika Arevadze , lawyer and Member of the Political Council of the party 'Akhali' , who, using specific legal cases, spoke about judges whose politically motivated decisions will remain in the public memory.

“Prisoners of conscience,” “hostages of the regime”

Tiflis24: The terms "prisoners of conscience" and "hostages of the regime" have already become established in large sections of society; one thinks of those arrested during the pro-European demonstrations in November and December and the period thereafter. What common features do their legal cases have?

Marika Arevadze: The same pattern is evident in the cases of regime prisoners—there is virtually no evidence in these proceedings. Even the statements of Georgian Dream political officials clearly show that these cases are not criminal offenses, but rather preventive arrests. As the Georgian Dream prime minister explained, people were detained preventively , and accordingly, it's clear why the cases were unprepared and why there is no evidence. What happened was this: several dozen people were detained preventively to influence others, and only then did they begin to prepare the cases.

If you look closely, the cases were distributed among a few specific judges. I would like to highlight Judge Nino Sakhelashvili of the Batumi City Court, who sentenced the completely innocent journalist Mzia Amaglobeli to two years' imprisonment, acting solely to protect her own person and dignity. It should be emphasized that this judge has no specialization in criminal law at all—and that is already a significant violation.

The general standard is this: The evidence and materials available in the trial must provide a reasonable basis for proving the charges. If the charges are not proven, if the totality of the evidence provides no basis for it, and if there is even the slightest doubt that the crime was not committed by the person, then that doubt must be resolved in favor of the accused , meaning a verdict of acquittal must be entered.

Regarding the Mzia Amaglobeli case: The police officer who insulted Mzia received a protest and a response to the insult. This police officer had suffered no health impairment whatsoever. For behavior to be considered a criminal offense, it must meet certain criteria. In Mzia Amaglobeli's case, this was not the case. There was no health impairment, no assault, and no assault committed in the performance of official duties. Consequently, in the absence of evidence, Mzia should have been acquitted. What do we see? The offense was reclassified and an attempt was made to impose a so-called minor punishment , so as not to back down, not to acquit her, and at the same time to impose comparatively fewer years on a completely innocent person.

Political focus on “apology”

Tiflis24: We heard from Georgian Dream leadership that they demanded an apology from the journalist, and this apology became, in a sense, the basis for an "agreement" to dismiss her. Why do you think the party and its leaders placed such emphasis on the "apology"?

Marika Arevadze: In conditions where the country is spiraling toward authoritarianism and human rights no longer exist, where the rule of law no longer exists, political aspects must be assessed alongside the legal ones. Political statements became the guiding principles for conducting the respective proceedings in virtually all cases. Mzia Amaglobeli's apology was necessary for the regime to break the prisoners of conscience and show society that their efforts were pointless and would not yield results . However, "Dream" received the opposite result . The regime's prisoners are unjustly imprisoned people, and this became "Dream's" Achilles' heel . The existence of prisoners of conscience is painful not only for the opposition-minded society, but even for "Dream" supporters.

Further criminal judges in politically motivated proceedings

Tiflis24: Which criminal judges were involved in the trial of politically motivated cases?

Marika Arevadze: The judge in the Saba Skhvitaridze case is Jvebe Nachkebia . According to widely reported information, this is a judge against whom criminal proceedings have been initiated and who has also been held accountable . It is noteworthy that he himself has never denied this information.

Note *: After recording this interview, Judge Jvebe Nachkebia sentenced Chechin, who was arrested for drug offenses, to 8 years and 6 months in prison.

Case of Anton Chechin

Chechin is accused of acquiring and possessing a particularly large quantity of narcotics. Anton Chechin was arrested in front of his home on December 3, 2024. On the day of his arrest, he said he had been arrested for participating in demonstrations . There is no video footage in the proceedings showing his search - Chechin himself says the drugs were planted on him by police. Chechin is a Russian citizen; he came to Georgia after Russia invaded Ukraine . He has a Georgian wife , with whom he took part in pro-European demonstrations in Tbilisi. Anton Chechin was fined for his participation in protests against the "agent law."

Before the verdict, Chechin addressed the court with the following words: "If I am found guilty, I will continue the fight with the help of other organizations because my rights are being violated in prison . Several complaints have been filed with the Special Investigation Service , but they are not being investigated because it is headed by the prosecutor's office , which is biased against me—not only because I am a defendant, but also because I have spoken out against the pro-Russian government ."

Responding to Judge Jvebe Nachkebia 's decision , Georgia's fifth president, Salome Zurabishvili , said: "This is not justice – this is a cruel act of political terror by a regime intent on stifling our country's European future."

Anri Kvaratskhelia case

In the cases of prisoners of conscience, Judge Jvebe Nachkebia also pronounced the sentence on 26-year-old Anri Kvaratskhelia , born into an internally displaced person family from Abkhazia , and sentenced him to four years and six months in prison. Kvaratskhelia was arrested at his home in the early hours of December 5. He was accused of throwing Molotov cocktails at Security Service (GDD) officers during a demonstration on December 1 , thereby " endangering their health ."

There are no known victims or health impairments among the special forces. In the video presented as evidence by prosecutor Roin Khintibidze , Anri Kvaratskhelia is said to be throwing a Molotov cocktail. During an alternative examination conducted by the defense, an expert from the Samkharauli office stated that the person's identity could not be established. Two GDD employees, who have the status of victims in this case, testified in court that they were not hit by a Molotov cocktail and were merely extinguishing the fire that had started on the asphalt.

According to the interrogation transcript, Anri Kvaratskhelia confessed to throwing a Molotov cocktail after his arrest. According to his lawyer, he was subjected to psychological pressure , and no lawyer was present during the confession .

Before the verdict, Kvarazkhelia said: "I am proud today that I stood by my country. My case is stitched together —I did n't understand the beginning or the end , what I was accused of, and why ."

Nino Datashvili case – trends in the judiciary

Tiflis24: Another high-profile case is that of civil society activist and teacher Nino Datashvili , who is accused of assaulting a judicial officer . What trend did this case indicate in the justice system?

Marika Arevadze: Judge Fikria Sikturashvili hadn't even been in office for a month when she made a shocking decision in the Nino Datashvili case, ordering a compulsory inpatient psychiatric assessment . She did so in such a way that Nino Datashvili himself was denied the opportunity to attend the hearing, and his lawyers were n't given the opportunity to enter and speak with Nino. In effect, she completely adopted the prosecutor's request and brought back the trauma of the Soviet Union , which our people, our parents' generation, know only too well. Later, the regime backtracked on this point as well , and the experts from Samkharauli's office went to prison and conducted the assessments on an outpatient basis .

The Nino Datashvili case: It happened on June 9th in the Tbilisi City Court . On that day, another court hearing of members of the opposition party and the activists arrested during the pro-European protests took place. Nino Datashvili wanted to attend this hearing . According to the prosecutor's office, court enforcement officers informed her that the hearing was already underway, there was no more room in the courtroom, and she could not attend. The video, which is being used as evidence in the proceedings, shows what happened in the court, including Datashvili's resistance as she was forcibly removed from the court.

43-year-old activist Nino Datashvili was arrested on June 20. On June 21 , Judge Eka Barbakadze ordered her pre-trial detention as a preventive measure . The activist and educator is accused of assaulting a public servant .

On August 4 , it was revealed that the detained activist had been forcibly transferred for psychiatric evaluation . Datashvili believes this is an attempt to discredit her and a continuation of the persecution.

Note: After the recording of this interview, it became known that Fikria Sikturashvili is the judge who, on the basis of a request from the Security Service (SUS), issued the order for the arrest of the opposition leader, the chairman of the political council of the “ United National Movement ”, Levan Khabeishvili .

Levan Khabeishvili is accused of “ offering a bribe to an official to commit an illegal act and publicly calling for the overthrow of state power.”

On September 13, UNM leader Irakli Nadiradze, speaking on the live broadcast of the First TV channel, stated, referring to the husband of Judge Fikria Sikturashvili , that Sikturashvili's husband, Zurab Berianidze , was an active operative of the security service and that he had organized the organized attack on Levan Khabeishvili in Kaspi years ago.

Judge in administrative matters

Tiflis24: What happens when it comes to judges who hear cases involving administrative offenses ? How do they make their decisions, and are political influences also at play here?

Marika Arevadze: I recall the case of Ani Kavtaradze , a member of the political council of the Akhali party, and Tornike Skhvitaridze , the brother of regime prisoner Saba Skhvitaridze . They were accused of calling Mirian Kavtaradze a "slave." Mirian Kavtaradze is a police officer who, it was alleged, was assaulted by Saba Skhvitaridze . On the night of December 4 , he attacked politicians while wearing titushki uniforms, and in his office, Saba Skhvitaridze was tortured twice after her arrest.

Although not a single neutral witness was presented during the trial, despite the numerous witnesses in court that day, three police officers were presented as witnesses, all of whom reported directly to Mirian Kavtaradze ; no further evidence existed. Judge Nino Enukidze of the Tbilisi City Court imposed a fine of 5,000 lari on Ani Kavtaradze , while Tornike Skhvitaridze was sentenced to five days of detention .

I also defended activist Giorgi Dumbadze when people were forcibly evicted from their homes on Tvalchrelidze Street throughout the day. Activists were arrested along with the residents. Giorgi Dumbadze was accused of blocking the street, but no evidence was presented against him. Nevertheless, Judge Zviad Tsekvava imposed a completely unfounded fine of 5,000 lari . I presented video footage circulated in the media showing that Giorgi Dumbadze did not commit any of the acts he was accused of by the Ministry of the Interior.

Another case: Giorgi Chkheidze was abducted from the court yard ; he was accused of calling a police officer a "slave" and a "false witness policeman." Giorgi Chkheidze denies this. We asked Judge Davit Tetrauli to secure Chkheidze's phone as evidence . The cell phone was located at the Ministry of the Interior , and we learned its location during the trial. Chkheidze was filming a video at the time of his arrest , and it would have been clear whether he uttered insults toward the law enforcement officers, because he did n't say anything like that. The judge decided not to grant our request or secure the evidence. The decision was made based on the police officers' statements , and Chkheidze was unfairly and unfoundedly sentenced to 4,000 lari . We appealed to the Court of Appeal; the judge upheld the city court's decision , and we are now preparing an appeal for Strasbourg .

Allocation of “regime prisoner” cases to specific judges

Tiflis24: How are the cases of “regime prisoners” assigned to judges in the courts?

There are honest judges in the court, but the cases of regime prisoners are assigned to a specific group . These judges do not administer justice based on the law, but rather render guilty verdicts by circumventing procedural issues. One such judge, for example, is Nino Galustashvili , who—this is a fact— ignores the facts of the case and renders guilty verdicts .

It is obvious that the cases of regime prisoners were not randomly assigned to judges, and this already provides concrete information about specific judges. These judges should understand very well that they are not pronouncing sentences on these boys and women today, but rather that they are passing judgment on their own futures . Their assessment will be determined not only historically but also legally , precisely in accordance with their decisions and—obviously— in accordance with the evidence presented in the trial . When change occurs and judicial reform begins, all these cases will be reviewed again by honest experts who will be sure to evaluate this standard —and everything will have consequences .