Ghent: (Brussels Morning) A jeweler near Ghent was acquitted of killing a robber but the robber’s family appealed the decision to the Court of Cassation to review the legal process. The jeweler is struggling with the appeal.
Last month a jeweler near Ghent was found not guilty of killing a robber who was running away. The jeweler said he felt like he had no choice but to shoot the robber and the judge agreed so the jeweler was cleared of the charges. The family of the robber who passed away is not happy with the decision so they are going to a higher court to check if the law was followed correctly in the trial and appeal.
What is the role of the Court of Cassation in ensuring justice and fairness in legal proceedings?
The high court the Court of Cassation doesn’t look at the facts of the case or who’s right or wrong. Its job is to check if the lower courts followed the rules and laws correctly. They don’t review the evidence again just make sure everything was done right legally. If the high court finds mistakes in how the law was used or if there were errors in the process it doesn’t fix them directly. Instead it cancels the old decision and asks for a new trial with a different court. This new court will look at the case again making sure to follow the correct legal rules pointed out by the high court. The Court of Cassation makes sure that the legal process is fair and accurate to ensure justice is served right.
Because it’s the family of the robber who appealed not the Public Prosecution Service and the Service decided not to appeal and the case is closed in criminal law and the jeweler won’t be punished. Now if the high court finds errors a professional judge may decide on compensation for the robber’s family.
The jeweler from Oostakker is really struggling with the news of the appeal by the family of the robber. He’s been having trouble sleeping since the acquittal waiting for the appeal period to end. Now that the appeal is happening it’s tough on him mentally especially since he’s already unwell. His lawyer Walter Van Steenbrugge says they will strongly defend the Court of Appeal’s decision and hope to wrap up the case by the end of the year.
