BACKGROUND: FROM A PREVIOUS POST OF THIS BLOG: "Tens of thousands of protesters gathered on January 26 outside the Greek Parliament in Athens, demanding justice for the 57 victims of the 2023 Tempi train disaster. One of the largest protests in recent years, the demonstration was mirrored by similar gatherings in more than 100 cities across Greece and Europe. The tragedy occurred on February 28, 2023, when a passenger train collided with a freight train near Tempi (sic), central Greece. Investigations revealed that the freight train was carrying 10 tons of flammable liquids, leading to a huge fireball that caused numerous fatalities. The authorities have continued to deny the existence of such cargo Protesters held banners reading “We won’t forget” and “I have no oxygen,” the latter echoing a victim’s last words during a distress call. The “I Have No Oxygen” movement, spearheaded by the Association of Tempi Accident Victims, has gained enough momentum to unite citizens in a call for accountability."
https://draft.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/120008354894645705/5146786155178924376
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PASSAGE OF THE DAY:
STORY: "Tempe train crash victims’ relatives sue investigating judge over missing evidence," published by The Press Project, on February 13, 2024.
GIST: "The relatives of the victims of the Tempe train crash have filed a lawsuit against the investigating judge handling the case. According to Maria Karystianou, "We recently learned that 649,000 audio and video files from the first two days, February 28 and March 1, were seized and handed over to the judge, but they are missing from the case file."
Maria Karystianou president of the Association “Tempe 2023”, and Pavlos Aslanidis, both parents of victims of the train crash, visited Larissa to meet with the investigating judge.
Karystianou explained:
“For two years, we’ve been dealing with questionable videos that suddenly appear, while the files from those two crucial days have been in the the judge’s possession from the start. You can imagine the scale of the cover-up and deceit by the judge, about whom I raised concerns recently, but instead of a strong reaction from the Supreme Court, there was no response. On the contrary, he received full support.”
She continued, “This is why, two years later, we still have no answers to any serious questions. So, today, we filed a lawsuit against the judge and anyone else involved in this matter, and we expect the justice system to finally work properly and reveal the full truth as soon as possible.”
Earlier, in an interview with ANT1 TV, Pavlos Aslanidis the father, who lost his son Dimitris in the crash, commented on the videos that suddenly appeared after two years, saying, “They probably want to shift the focus away from the explosion and the fire that claimed 27 lives. It’s a diversion.”
He further questioned, “How is it possible that requests were made to the company and to the Hellenic Railways Organization by both the first investigating judge and the second one, Mr Bakaimis, only to be told the footage was erased and nothing remains? And then, out of nowhere, an employee claims to have found it?”
Aslanidis also emphasized that the victims’ relatives have no trust in the two judicial experts appointed by the judge to verify the authenticity of the videos. He said, “These experts, are completely unqualified. They were appointed on 1 March, 2023, collected samples from the fire, but did no research on the fire’s source and adopted the government’s position that the fire was caused by silicone oils, an argument that has already been debunked. These individuals have been sued, and it’s unacceptable that the judge appointed them.”
When asked if he trusts the justice system, Aslanidis replied, “Let’s not hide it. In Greece, the justice system at the highest level is appointed by the government, so the state gives the orders."
The entire story can be read at:
SEE BREAKDOWN OF SOME OF THE ON-GOING INTERNATIONAL CASES (OUTSIDE OF THE CONTINENTAL USA) THAT I AM FOLLOWING ON THIS BLOG, AT THE LINK BELOW: HL:
https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/120008354894645705/4704913685758792985
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FINAL WORD: (Applicable to all of our wrongful conviction cases): "Whenever there is a wrongful conviction, it exposes errors in our criminal legal system, and we hope that this case — and lessons from it — can prevent future injustices."
Lawyer Radha Natarajan:
Executive Director: New England Innocence Project;
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FINAL, FINAL WORD: "Since its inception, the Innocence Project has pushed the criminal legal system to confront and correct the laws and policies that cause and contribute to wrongful convictions. They never shied away from the hard cases — the ones involving eyewitness identifications, confessions, and bite marks. Instead, in the course of presenting scientific evidence of innocence, they've exposed the unreliability of evidence that was, for centuries, deemed untouchable." So true!
Christina Swarns: Executive Director: The Innocence Project;
