The courts in the Ruse region may be left without jurors. The reason - a lack of people willing to work. How their lack can affect a trial - tells Natalia Yordanova.
Mariyan Dimitrov recently completed his sixth term as a juror. For 24 years he was part of the judicial panel in both the District and Regional Courts - Ruse. Because of the responsibility, he started studying law.
“The voice of the juror is equal to the voice of the judge and the other juror”, he explained, quoted by Nova TV.
He says that the juror can have a different opinion on a case than the judge.
“It has happened to me twice in 24 years and I have written reasons”, the man claims.
The lack of interest in this work can be explained by several factors. Since the cases are heard during working hours, there were employers who, although they are legally obliged to release their employee, did not look favorably on the absences. The second reason is the low remuneration.
The lack of a juror can ruin a case.
„If there are no jurors, a court panel cannot be formed, which means that the case must be considered by another court of equal status”, explained Nikolinka Chokoeva, president of the Ruse District Court. And this problem concerns all participants in a trial.
„Moving to another judicial district will, of course, create difficulties for all participants in the trial”, Chokoeva specified.
When the number of jurors in a given district is below 50 percent of the required number, a list of jurors cannot be approved. Then the only legal solution is to extend the mandate of the old ones.
Over 50 jurors are being sought for the Ruse District Court. Due to the lack of applicants, the Municipal Council had to hold a second competition.
“A factor that influences the lack of such great interest in jurors may be the inability to combine work commitments with those of a juror”, specified Nora Stoyanova, chairwoman of the Juror Selection Commission.
“In Sofia, this problem has been resolved by having young retirees apply for municipal councils,” claims Chokoeva.