This day last year was the final day of closing statements in Case 002/01.
The substantive part of the trial commenced with opening statements on 21 November 2011, and the evidence hearing ended on 23 July 2013.
· The trial, including closing statements, lasted for a total of 222 hearing days.
· Ninety-two individuals gave evidence during the trial hearings, including 3 expert witnesses, 53 fact witnesses, 5 character witnesses and 31 Civil Parties. In addition, two treating doctors and two medical experts testified about the health condition of the accused persons.
· 103,274 persons attended the hearings.
It then took eleven months until the Trial Chamber passed down its verdict, on 7 August 2014. Khieu Samphan and Nuon Chea were sentenced to life imprisonment having been found guilty of crimes against humanity, and both sentenced to life imprisonment.
On 1 September, Ms. Claudia Frenz (Austria) was appointed at the new international judge to serve in the Trial Chambers, with Mr. Martin Karopkin (USA) later announced at the new international reserve judge.
On 29 September, the defence teams filed appeals, Nuon Chea’s listed 223 grounds of appeal, and Khieu Samphan’s 148 grounds. The Prosecutors also filed a limited appeal asking for an explanation from the judges regarding their decision to exclude certain joint criminal enterprises from consideration.
17 October saw the Hearing on Substance in Case 002/02, with Nuon Chea and Khieu Samphan facing charges of genocide against Cham and Vietnamese minorities, as well as crimes against humanity and war crimes relating to the work camps, cooperatives, security centres and the regulation of marriage nationwide.
It was an eventful day at court, with a morning protest by almost 200 victims of the Khmer Rouge, seeking personal monetary reparations of $13,500 each, and the entire Defence teams walking out of the court in the afternoon, requesting more time to prepare for their defence appeals, and for their appeals pertaining to the judges to be ruled on.
On 24 October, the Counsel for Khieu Samphan and Nuon Chea were officially warned for misconduct and ordered to appear at the trial management meeting, pursuant to Internal Rule 38. The warning was issued to the national and international defence counsel after they abandoned the courtroom during the opening statements in Case 002/02 on 17 October 2014 and subsequently either failed to appear, or provide valid justification for their absence from a Trial Management Meeting convened on 21 October 2014. The Trial Chamber found that this conduct amounts to an obstruction of the proceedings.