Appeals Court commutes prison terms for former yellow-shirt guards

[webfact]

Appeals Court commutes prison terms for former yellow-shirt guards



BANGKOK: -- The Appeals Court today commuted jail sentence for 85 yellow-shirt guards charged with the intrusion into the compound of the state-owned NBT Channel in August 2008 after considering their testimonies were reasonable, and useful.

All the 85 defendants were former guards of the defunct People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD) and were charged with illegal assembly, intrusion into state compound and damaging state property.

Earlier the Criminal Court (the Court of first Instance) sentenced the guard chief Thanes Kamsuk to two years and six months in prison, while the rest from six months to two years and six months.

But six of the defendants were given extended jail sentence as they were teenagers at the time they commuted the crimes.

In today’s hearing of their appeals, the Appeal Court overruled the jail sentence of the defendants by the Criminal Court, reasoning that some defendants have confessed, and their confessions were also useful during the trial process and deserved to have their jail sentences reduced.

The Appeals Court then reversed the jail sentence handed down by the Criminal Court for the 85 defendants from two years and six months to six months to one year instead.

But the court further reasoned that since their testimonies were useful, they deserved to have their sentences commuted by half to 3-8 months.

For six defendants who were teenagers at the time the crimes were committed, the court gave them extended jail sentence instead.

But for six defendants who failed to appear at the Appeals Court today to listen to their verdicts, the Appeals Court issued warrant of arrest to bring them to serve the jail sentence.

Their lawyers were at press time seeking temporary release for all of them with 200,000 baht cash as bail for each defendant.

(Photo : Thai PBS File)

Source: http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/appeals-court-commutes-prison-terms-former-yellow-shirt-guards


-- Thai PBS 2014-11-17

[ChrisY1]

Why do they even bother to take these cases to court........the end results are usually always the same.....let 'em go!

[Pib]

Hard to go to jail in Thailand for a long time....plenty of pardons, commuted sentences, good behavior reductions, etc., to get most anyone out of prison many years short of the original sentence. This gives many an early opportunity to start working on going back to prison.

[somo]

Have convicted red shirts been let off for similar stuff or, heaven forbid, are the courts supportive of the yellows.

[Pierrefun]

Have convicted red shirts been let off for similar stuff or, heaven forbid, are the courts supportive of the yellows.

You could say the courts of supportive of the reds as a number of them have not had their cases finalized from their arrests in 2007, 2009, and 2010. So for them, it's too early to know if they will be let off after whenever they are ever tried.

[bangkokfrog]

"For six defendants who were teenagers at the time the crimes were committed, the court gave them extended jail sentence instead."

I expect they mean 'suspended' jail sentences. How about Thai PBS hiring a competent editor?

[candide]

In the name of reconciliation

[Fatty123]

Have convicted red shirts been let off for similar stuff or, heaven forbid, are the courts supportive of the yellows.

They usually get shot in the street before courts are required.

[The stuttering parrot]

Actually this is good news for both red and yellows!

The yellows are allowed to go free with a slap on the wrist so they are happy.

The udd reds and the people of Thailand will once again see why the yellow elite dems get free pass and this will only make them more determined to ensure a massive victory at the next election.

Win win both sides !

[AleG]

Actually this is good news for both red and yellows!

The yellows are allowed to go free with a slap on the wrist so they are happy.

The udd reds and the people of Thailand will once again see why the yellow elite dems get free pass and this will only make them more determined to ensure a massive victory at the next election.

Win win both sides !

Your factually incorrect statement (to put it mildly): "The yellows are allowed to go free with a slap on the wrist so they are happy."

The actual facts: "The Appeals Court then reversed the jail sentence handed down by the Criminal Court for the 85 defendants from two years and six months to six months to one year instead."

Do you notice a difference? Why do you have to make up stuff?

[soalbundy]

Hard to go to jail in Thailand for a long time....plenty of pardons, commuted sentences, good behavior reductions, etc., to get most anyone out of prison many years short of the original sentence. This gives many an early opportunity to start working on going back to prison.

You have to be a farang to do serious time,its one of the privileges of having a nose.

[ALLSEEINGEYE]

Hard to go to jail in Thailand for a long time....plenty of pardons, commuted sentences, good behavior reductions, etc., to get most anyone out of prison many years short of the original sentence. This gives many an early opportunity to start working on going back to prison.

Try picking mushrooms at a national park...they throw the book at ya!!!

[billd766]

Actually this is good news for both red and yellows!

The yellows are allowed to go free with a slap on the wrist so they are happy.

The udd reds and the people of Thailand will once again see why the yellow elite dems get free pass and this will only make them more determined to ensure a massive victory at the next election.

Win win both sides !

Your factually incorrect statement (to put it mildly): "The yellows are allowed to go free with a slap on the wrist so they are happy."

The actual facts: "The Appeals Court then reversed the jail sentence handed down by the Criminal Court for the 85 defendants from two years and six months to six months to one year instead."

Do you notice a difference? Why do you have to make up stuff?

Probably because he would not know the truth if he fell over it. He would try to blame anybody but the Red Shirts for leaving it inconveniently in his way and blame the Yellow Shirts (who don't actually exist anymore) first of all followed by the General and the Army.

[The stuttering parrot]

Well getting 2 years knocked off your sentence from 2 years and 6 months to 6 months and that's all they will get then that's a slap on the wrist even more so if someone fronts bail and they get out.

As for the yellows shirts to me the elite mob who robbed the Thais of democracy are the same dog with a different collar or a leopard never changes it's spots.

Take your pick.

[Alwyn]

oh, what a shock..