On video: Demonstrations and roadblocks in protest of the legal revolution (Walla! system, Naomi Gibson, Pell aerial photography)
A judge in Hadera fined a lawyer of the Public Defender's Office 5,000 shekels, because on Monday she went out to demonstrate against the legal revolution and did not appear for the hearing before him.
The lawyer immediately paid the fine, and in protest wrote on the payment voucher: "It is good to fight and sacrifice for our country."
This is the eighth hearing in a case related to domestic violence from 2021, which is being held at the Magistrate's Court in Hadera before Judge Alex Akhter, for more than a year.
The defense attorney from Zichron Yaakov approached the court three days before the hearing and asked to postpone it - she did not hide her motives, and explained that she intends to strike and participate in a demonstration against the moves promoted by the government.
However, Judge Akhtar did not agree and rejected the defense attorney's request, "since the hearings in the court are proceeding as usual and in light of the fact that the case is scheduled for the hearing of evidence."
Then he also clarified that even though the lawyer's appeal bears the title of a request, in his opinion it can be understood that she is actually informing the court that she will not appear for the evidence session.
The lawyer's payment voucher (photo: courtesy of the photographers)
The judge lamented that despite his refusal to adjourn the hearing, the lawyer again asked for an adjournment, "only this time in a more blatant tone".
According to him, in the second case she also highlighted her position: "I am striking and going out to exercise my fundamental right to demonstrate for the sake of saving democracy in Israel, and believe that it is to be regretted that the court stands in my way of doing so."
The lawyer later clarified that she would not appear for the hearing.
"You must approach the court in a respectable and acceptable way, certainly not through the notification, clarification and self-prosecution," the judge informed her in another decision rejecting her request, while noting that she represents the accused on behalf of the public defender's office.
"A public body funded by the state that does not go on strike and therefore the lawyers representing defendants on behalf of the public defender, in my opinion, are obliged to conduct themselves in a state manner, all the more so when the court rejects the request."
He emphasized: "
The defense attorney stood by her statements, did not show up for the meeting and angered Judge Akhtar, who stated that she "abandoned the accused, did not give her proper and adequate representation, blatantly ignored the court's decisions and apparently also the instructions of the public defender's office and judged herself."
The judge sought to clarify that "the court in its decisions did not prevent the lawyer from exercising her rights, to 'demonstrate for the sake of saving democracy in Israel', and she could have done so even after the evidence in the case was administered."
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"She could demonstrate even after the debate."
Judge Alex Akhter (photo: official website, courts website)
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The prosecution unit of the police did not petition to impose costs on the defense attorney.
"It's a shame," noted the determined judge to teach a lesson to all involved parties.
"According to the customary rulings and the authority granted to me, and in light of the behavior of the defense attorney who chose to ignore the court's decisions, to act on her own, to leave the accused without representation, to damage the valuable judicial time, and to damage the legal process, I find it appropriate in this exceptional case to require her to pay personal expenses to be paid in favor of Otsar the state".
The Israel Police was saved, Judge Alex Akhter intended to charge it as well.
But due to the fact that she summoned the prosecution's witnesses and they did show up for the hearing, he decided not to impose costs "and this despite her passive position".
"I hope it's not political," she told Walla!
Another lawyer, Shira Kidar, who said that lawyers and lawyers from the public defender's office are collecting a deposit, and intend to share the high amount that the judge imposed on their colleague.
"I think it is wrong to force us to appear under these circumstances. No serious damage would have been caused. This is not a detainee's case," she added.
"Political opinion does not matter. We stand by our friend who suffered disproportionate expenses. This is an amount that would have hurt anyone's pocket. It is taking food from her children. If the judge wanted to express his displeasure, he could have awarded symbolic expenses, but he chose to award her thousands Shekels, which must be all the fees in this case. I hope she will file an appeal and she should file quickly before the grounds of reasonableness and proportionality and the rule of natural justice are eliminated."
Kidar has previous experience, from a week before, where she had three scheduled hearings and she asked to postpone them under similar circumstances, and go out to demonstrate and even represent the protest detainees with the consent of the head of the police prosecution branch in her room.
Two judges accepted her request, but the one who refused was Judge Akhtar.
She also requested a reconsideration of his decision, and he again denied her request.
"In the circumstances where two other judges submitted, it feels wrong, improper and illogical not to consider the decisions of his fellow judges. I had no choice and appeared before him. This created an absurd situation because the hearing was canceled for two clients and in the end I had to get to the third case."
The lawyer charged with the costs chose not to respond to the news.
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