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18 maltatoday EXECUTIVE EDITOR Matthew Vella MANAGING EDITOR Saviour Balzan Letters to the Editor, MaltaToday, Vjal ir-Rihan, San Gwann SGN 9016 E-mail: dailynews@mediatoday.com.mt Letters must be concise, no pen names accepted, include full name and address maltatoday | SUNDAY • 12 AUGUST 2018 13 August, 2008 Magistrate claims Azzopardi jumped, rules out police brutality The magisterial inquiry into the death of Nich- olas Azzopardi has established that the 38-year- old man, who died on 22 April after claiming he had been beaten up and thrown off a wall by police interrogators, was not beaten by anyone, according to a home affairs ministry statement issued yesterday afternoon. Announcing that the inquiry by Magistrate An- tonio Vella was concluded and passed on to the ministry and the Attorney General, government said the findings showed that Azzopardi was not beaten by anyone during his two days in custody on 8 and 9 April. According to a summary of the court's conclu- sions distributed by the Department of Informa- tion, Azzopardi "escaped from police custody" on 9 April at around 5:59pm, jumping off a three- storey wall into a school ground. Azzopardi died 13 days later at Mater Dei hospital. "At no time was there any aggression, beat- ings or violence on Nicholas Azzopardi from a member or members of the police, during the time when he was in their custody from Tues- day, 8 April at 3:15pm till 9 April, 5:59pm, when he escaped and jumped off," the statement said. Azzopardi's brother, Reno, however con- tested the magistrate's conclusions, claiming they were mainly based on a film clip that was inconclusive. "I've been shown the police CCTV footage, showing Nicholas from behind, walking ac- companied by Sergeant Adrian Lia and Con- stable Reuben Zammit," his brother said. "He then appears again unaccompanied, looking over balustrades and walking back, out of the screen. So the video really proves noth- ing, if anything it shifts the onus back onto the police as to why he was left unaccompanied at that time and requires explanations about the alleged scratches that one of the police officers is said to have suffered trying to stop him from jumping." The statement also reiterated the police version that a constable (PC 1359) sustained minor injuries on his forearms trying to stop Azzopardi from jumping off the wall. The government added that Azzopardi's inju- ries were "compatible with a trauma after falling from a height, given that they are all situated on one side of Azzopardi's body and are the result of a violent impact with a hard surface". Azzopardi's brother, however, also disputed the validity of the police footage supplied to the magistrate. "They are saying it was shot on Wednes- day, but we have no way of knowing whether that's true or not. If they have the footage they should also show the film of him entering police headquarters on Tuesday." MaltaToday 10 years ago Quote of the Week Justice must be a level playing field IT is usually unwise to draw too many conclu- sions about a country's justice system, from comparisons between different individual cases. Ultimately, most people's knowledge of the legal process arises from press coverage of court sessions: and while the media likes to think it offers a comprehensive overview, the reality is that many of the nuances of any given case will not make it into the printed article or televised bulletin. Judges and magistrates are often compelled to take extenuating factors into account, when delivering verdicts, or taking decisions such as whether or not to grant bail. In many cases, this will give rise to perceptions of 'double standards' that might not, in truth, be double standards at all. Nonetheless, it is equally unwise to exclude such comparisons a priori. It is, after all, a basic prerequisite of any justice system to see to it that the justice it delivers is fair and equi- table to all concerned. It was, therefore, with some surprise that this newspaper reported that bail was granted this week to three men accused of a violent attempted murder, under circumstances remi- niscent of other equivalent crimes that re- ceived different treatment from the courts. The men in question – Lorenzo Callus, known as 'Ħeswes', Paul Farrugia, known as 'Kwattru', and Jonathan Farrugia, known as 'Ġanni ta' Nina' – are charged with the at- tempted murder of Mario Scicluna and his partner Elaine Galdes, using a car bomb. Callus was also charged with carrying a weapon without a licence on the day of his arrest, as well as the possession of a canna- bis plant, cannabis resin and an unspecified quantity of heroin. Paul Farrugia was charged with the possession of a large quantity of con- traband cigarettes which were found by police in a garage named Flower Way, in Xghajra, on the 15 March. More cigarettes were found in a Peugeot Partner that was intercepted by police. It is to be noted that police investigations into the failed car-bomb attempt in Fgura last January also led to the discovery of contraband cigarettes, explosives and drugs. All three were granted bail on Thursday, against a €70,000 personal guarantee and a €30,000 deposit. They were also ordered to sign the bail book at the police station every day, between 6am and 9pm. Without interfering with the merits of the case itself, it automatically raises eyebrows when bail is granted for such serious crimes. In theory, planting a car-bomb could place more lives, than just the intended victims', in peril. The bomb might have gone off in the middle of busy traffic – as indeed happened in Msida last year – or as the car drove past pedestrians. Even without that consideration, the nature of the crime calls to mind the brutal murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia just under a year ago. This forces us to make comparisons, no mat- ter how odious, between how the law-courts reacted to bail requests in either case. Then as now, three men were charged with planting a car-bomb with a view to committing murder – successfully, this time – but all three have been refused bail, and remain in custody at the Corradino Correctional Facility. Significantly, Magistrate Claire Stafrace Zammit denied bail in light of the gravity of the crimes they were being accused of, and the fear that they could abscond or commit an- other crime. There is no immediate reason why those concerns should apply to Caruana Galizia murder case, but not to the attempted mur- der of two people in similar ways. One can- not seriously entertain the argument that one case deserves different treatment, because it involved a successful murder attempt instead of an unsuccessful one. The intention was the same in both cases: which also means that the 'fear that [the suspects] could abscond or com- mit another crime' is equally well-founded in both. Nor can we allow the view – which is cer- tainly true, on a superficial level – that Daphne Caruana Galizia's case was more shocking, in part because the victim was a well-known public figure, whose murder traumatised the country more than others. To argue that way would be to condone a system where justice is served differently, on the basis of the identity of the victim. It would be an injustice, all unto itself. Unfortunately, this leaves us with the un- comfortable conclusion that the difference may be down to the idiosyncrasies of individ- ual judges and magistrates. For while – admit- tedly – jurisprudence must leave a little room for discretion by the judiciary, there should surely be clear and fixed rules of engagement – applicable equally to everyone – whereby such decisions are taken. In all self-respecting judicial systems, the severity of the crime will be the first consid- eration in any bail request. Some of the more common reasons for bail denial are: numer- ous penal code violations, prior escape from prison, or if the judge believes the suspect is a flight risk and will not appear in court. In Malta, these basic principles are all ap- plied by the law-courts... but at a glance, it cannot be said that they are always applied evenly. If justice is to be seen to be done... it must also be seen to be done on a level-playing field. Editorial "It is only through responsible adult exam- ple that children learn to respect their peers even when they do not agree with them." Children's Commissioner Pauline Mice- li's public statement on bullying and the effects of public and political exposure