Lawyer accuses colleagues of violating right to defense in Moldova

Lawyer Vitalie Taulean said the public defenders do not consciously honor their obligations and violate the rights of those who need to be defended in court. The statements were made in a news conference at IPN on November 21.

Taulean explained his accusations by giving as example the case of his client Maria Olaru, who was abandoned by a lawyer in the office of the prosecution officer during an interrogation, while another two lawyers ignored the violation of the norms by the police and prosecutors.

The lawyer said the woman was blackmailed by prosecutors and policemen because she earlier submitted a complaint against a policeman who maltreated her. As she didn’t withdraw her complaint, the Ciocana district police started a criminal case over hooliganism and then one more case over the same offense after she suffered a breakdown in the office of the prosecution officer.

“Maria Olaru was threatened that she will be thrown into a basement, was provoked and, as a result, suffered a nervous breakdown. Instead of calling an ambulance, they filmed her and, without preventing her, searched her in the presence of men and, in several hours, started a criminal case against her and issued the indictment. The case was evidently fabricated, while the lawyers, instead of defending her, handed in glove with the police and prosecutors,” stated the lawyer.

Maria Olaru told the same news conference that she has been persecuted after she filed a complaint about maltreatment against a police officer. “They warned me that if I do not withdraw my complaint, I will be jailed,” stated the woman.