Appeals Court hands down lighter sentence on Thammasat lecturer for contempt of court



BANGKOK: -- The Appeals Court today reversed a one-month prison term handed down on a Thammasat University lecturer by the Civil Court to one month detention instead for contempt of court.

The defendant, Mrs Sudsa-nguan Sutheesorn, was charged for contempt of court along with two other suspects, Mrs Darunee Kritboonyalai and Picha Wijitsilp, a lawyer for the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship, after leading a protest in front of the Civil Court on February 21, 2014 criticising its performance. The protesters also laid a wreath in front of the court.

Mrs Darunee has jumped bail and at large while the lawyer had died.

Picha died after the Civil Court sentenced him and Mrs Sudsa-nguan to two months in prison but commuted to one month in prison with no suspension of the sentence.

But Sudsa-nguan appealed.

A warrant for the arrest of Mrs Darunee was issued by the Civil Court.

In today’s hearing of the ruling of the charge, the Appeals Court reversed the one-month prison term to one-month detention instead for her and the UDD lawyer Picha, but remained the no suspended sentence ruled by the first court (Civil Court).

Reasons given by the Appeals Court to deny suspended sentence for her are that she graduated bachelor degree in law from Thammasat University, master degree from the United States, and therefore should be well aware of the court trial procedure. Placing wreath and chanting slogans ridiculing the court’s ruling was a show of disrespect to the law and is a serious offence.

The court said although she was never sentenced to prison term, this could not be an excuse to receive suspended sentence.

But the court said it agreed to reverse the prison sentence to detention sentence instead.

Under the Criminal Procedure Code, suspect sentenced to detention term is not regarded a prisoner, and the court will order where the suspect should be detained. The place for detention must be outside the prison.

Source: http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/appeals-court-hands-down-lighter-sentence-on-thammasat-lecturer-for-contempt-of-court


-- Thai PBS 2015-11-26

???????????

It's nice they softened the sentence for the dead lawyer.

Reality is stranger than fiction.

"...Placing wreath and chanting slogans ridiculing the court’s ruling was a show of disrespect to the law and is a serious offence..."

I'd say she knew the law very well. She was asserting her right to free speech. What she forgot is Democracy has been suspended and all Democratic freedoms revoked by Mr. P and 44.

I wish more Thais were like them but they are a rare, rare breed

If everyone keeps going to the appeals court, why not just do-away with the lower courts all together (and save everybody time and money)?

If everyone keeps going to the appeals court, why not just do-away with the lower courts all together (and save everybody time and money)?

There would be no show then, no illusions, no soap opera The lower courts get to act tough and the higher courts get to look compassionate .

If everyone keeps going to the appeals court, why not just do-away with the lower courts all together (and save everybody time and money)?

The main court is there to scare them with a jail term then the resultant pastry boxes will be freely available during the panic of appeal.

It's quite astounding how many sentences get squashed on appeal. Either the main court Judges are truly incompetent to make so many bad decisions or something funny is going on.

"...Placing wreath and chanting slogans ridiculing the court’s ruling was a show of disrespect to the law and is a serious offence..."

I'd say she knew the law very well. She was asserting her right to free speech. What she forgot is Democracy has been suspended and all Democratic freedoms revoked by Mr. P and 44.

No she wasn't asserting any right to free speech. She went OTT in dsagreeing with a court's judgement by insulting the court - against the law here for years.

Oh BTW it happened before the coup. Isn't ignorance bliss?

A lot of people dying in prison these days....