BEFORE A BENCH OF THE APPEALS CHAMBER
Before: Judge Mohamed Shahabuddeen, Presiding
Judge Lal Chand Vohrah
Judge Wang Tieya
Registrar: Mrs. Dorothee de Sampayo Garrido-Nijgh
Decision of: 24 August 1998
PROSECUTOR
v.
ANTO FURUNDZIJA
__________________________________________________
DECISION ON DEFENDANTS REQUEST FOR LEAVE TO APPEAL
TRIAL CHAMBER IIS ORDER OF 16 JULY 1998
__________________________________________________
The Office of the Prosecutor:
Ms. Brenda Hollis
Ms. Patricia Sellers
Mr. Michael Blaxill
Counsel for the Accused:
Mr. Luka Misetic
Mr. Sheldon Davidson
PEDERSEN & HOUPT. P. C.
161 North Clark Street, Suite 3100
Chicago, IL 60601, USA
This Bench of the Appeals Chamber ("the Bench") of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia ("International Tribunal");
NOTING the Defendants Request for Leave to Appeal Trial Chamber IIs Order of 16 July 1998 ("Request"), filed on 23 July 1998, and subsequent filings by the parties;
RECALLING that, on 19 July 1998, the Bench made an Order Accepting Filings;
NOTING that the Request seeks leave to appeal Trial Chamber IIs Decision of 16 July 1998, made after the close of the hearing, ordering the re-opening of the proceedings to enable further evidence to be given by either party;
NOTING that leave to appeal is being sought pursuant to Rule 73 (B) of the Rules of Procedure and Evidence of the International Tribunal, which provides as follows:
Decisions on such motions are without interlocutory appeal save with the leave of a bench of three Judges of the Appeals Chamber which may grant such leave
(i) if the decision impugned would cause such prejudice to the case of the party seeking leave as could not be cured by the final disposal of the trial including post-judgement appeal; or
(ii) if the issue in the proposed appeal is of general importance to proceedings before the Tribunal or international law generally.
CONSIDERING the interlocutory nature of the proposed appeal;
FINDING that the Decision to re-open the proceedings cannot cause such prejudice to the case of the Defence as could not be cured by the final disposal of the trial including post-judgement appeal, within the meaning of Rule 73 (B) (i);
AND FINDING that the issue in the proposed appeal is not of general importance to proceedings before the International Tribunal or in international law generally, within the meaning of Rule 73 (B) (ii);
HEREBY DECIDES, unanimously, to refuse to grant leave to appeal as sought in the Request.
Done in English and French, the English text being authoritative.
_______________________
Mohamed Shahabuddeen,
Presiding Judge
Dated this twenty-fourth day of August 1998
At The Hague,
The Netherlands
[Seal of the Tribunal]