Epress.am News from Armenia
During the trial, Yerem Sargsyan, representing Davit Khachatryan who is accused of killing rank-and-file soldier Lyuks Stepanyan (in the photo) at a Noyemberyan military unit on May 15, 2013, petitioned to change the charge against his client from premeditated murder to breach of rules for handling weapons, which negligently caused human death (RA Criminal Code Article 373 Sections 2 and 3), Sargsyan told Epress.am today, adding that during the trial at the Tavush District Court of First Instance yesterday, not only the main petition, but also the relevant justifications were presented.
"With all the evidence obtained, it was substantiated that the conversation between Lyuks and Davit was simply a joke, which at the time both those present and Lyuks understood. During that time there was no reason that would've forced Davit to take such an extreme step or have such an intent, and the shot was simply the result of an accident. True, he held the gun in position [on Lyuks] as a joke, and therein lies his crime, that he broke the rules [for handling weapons]," says Sargsyan.
The lawyer said that at the upcoming trial on July 4, Khachatryan will make his final speech, after which the court will issue a verdict.
"With the evidence we presented, those present in the courtroom were unequivocally convinced that we're right. WIth a 42-page official speech we presented not our desires, but a 90% analysis of the evidence. This is simply a wish [of the state bodies] for him to be convicted under the premeditated murder charge: this is the direction state bodies took from the start. Now the same state bodies are constrained with the promises they made and the direction they took. I am sure that the injured party should’ve been the first to take an interest in revealing an objective reality. I don’t think murder is better if it was as a result of [a] chance [accident]," he concluded.
Lyuks Stepanyan's father, Ishkhan Stepanyan, in conversation with Epress.am, said that Khachatryan's attorney's petition was a "well-organized show" which nobody believed. He said they will continue to demand life imprisonment or the death sentence for Khachatryan. Note, Armenian legislation does not provide for the death penalty.
Recall, after the incident, Stepanyan's relatives decided to bring the coffin with the soldier's body in it to Yerevan. On the Sevan-Yerevan highway they were met with RA Minister of Defense Seyran Ohanyan, and after lengthy negotiations, he persuaded Ishkhan Stepanyan to return home and bury the body. Ohanyan promised to monitor the criminal case.