Page 14319
1 Friday, 12 July 2013
2 [Open session]
3 [The accused entered court]
4 --- Upon commencing at 9.36 a.m.
5 JUDGE ORIE: Good morning to everyone in and around this
6 courtroom.
7 Madam Registrar, would you please call the case.
8 THE REGISTRAR: Good morning, Your Honours.
9 This is the case number IT-09-92-T, the Prosecutor versus
10 Ratko Mladic.
11 JUDGE ORIE: Thank you, Madam Registrar.
12 The Chamber was informed that the Defence wanted to raise a
13 preliminary matter.
14 Mr. Stojanovic.
15 MR. STOJANOVIC: [Interpretation] Good morning, Your Honours.
16 Thank you.
17 I should like to ask once again, Your Honours, in keeping what
18 you've told us last time, to move again to urgently resolve the issue of
19 the means and pace of work in view of the health of General Mladic. The
20 reason for my address today is that we received yesterday a new report of
21 the medical officer of the Detention Unit, who stands by his previous
22 proposal. And every visit we make to General Mladic also encourages us
23 to ask for this to be solved as soon as possible.
24 JUDGE ORIE: Mr. Stojanovic, if the decision will not be signed
25 and filed today, then it will not be later than Monday or Tuesday, if
Page 14320
1 that is sufficient. It also shows that we are working on it very hard.
2 MR. STOJANOVIC: [Interpretation] Thank you, Your Honours.
3 JUDGE ORIE: Then I would like to raise a preliminary scheduling
4 matter about the 92 ter motions in relation to Richard Wright and
5 Christopher Lawrence.
6 On the 1st of July, the Prosecution has filed two urgent Rule
7 92 ter motions pertaining to Witnesses Wright and Lawrence who are
8 currently scheduled to testify in the week of the 15th of July. On the
9 4th of July, the Prosecution filed its notice of disclosure of additional
10 expert reports including three reports by Witness Wright.
11 The Prosecution submitted that cognisant of the short notice the
12 Defence has received of the Prosecution's intention to tender these three
13 additional reports by Witness Wright, it is prepared to recall the
14 witness after the summer recess for additional examination, if necessary.
15 On the 10th of July, the Defence filed its response to the
16 motion.
17 In its responses the Defence submits, inter alia, that is
18 inappropriate to introduce extracts from previous testimonies of these
19 witnesses into evidence as the Chamber has not yet reached a conclusion
20 with regard to the overall reliability of Wright and Lawrence as expert
21 witnesses and the statuses of their reports disclosed by the Prosecution
22 on the 6th of November, 2012.
23 In this respect, the Chamber would like to remind the parties of
24 its oral decision of the 24th of May of this year where it considered
25 Witness Wright as an expert in the field of forensic archeology and
Page 14321
1 Witness Lawrence as an expert in the field of forensic pathology.
2 Furthermore, the Chamber deferred its decision of admission into
3 evidence of the tendered reports of these witnesses until the time of
4 their respective testimonies. It is therefore for the Defence to show
5 the alleged unreliability of these witnesses.
6 The Defence further submits that the 92 ter motions were filed
7 less than 30 days before the expected testimony of Witness Wright and
8 Lawrence and is not in compliance with the Chamber's guidance. It also
9 complains about the late filing of the Prosecution's notice containing
10 three additional reports by Witness Wright.
11 As to Witness Lawrence, having reviewed the Defence's submissions
12 and the transcripts tendered by the Prosecution, the Chamber considers
13 that Witness Lawrence can be called to testify in the week of the
14 15th of July as scheduled. The Chamber further considers that at the end
15 of its cross-examination, the Defence may, if necessary, request that the
16 witness return for further cross-examination.
17 As to Witness Wright, having verified the matter with the
18 Victims and Witness Section, the Chamber notes that the witness was
19 expected to arrive in the Netherlands from Australia early this morning.
20 Consequently, the Chamber considers it to be in the interest of justice
21 that he commences his testimony on Monday, the 15th of July, as
22 scheduled.
23 I immediately add to this that if the Prosecution would examine
24 the witness on the three additional reports, that the Chamber will grant
25 any request by the Defence to have further time to prepare for
Page 14322
1 cross-examination on those three reports. It's very unfortunate that the
2 witness is already on his way because it may result in perhaps a waste of
3 resources - I do not know yet - but therefore we start. The Defence is
4 expected to cross-examine the witness on the reports other than the three
5 new ones. If the Defence would be ready to cross-examine him also on the
6 latest three reports, that's fine. But if the Defence considers that it
7 needs more time to prepare, then the witness will have to be recalled for
8 further cross-examination.
9 Of course, it's also -- the Prosecution could also withdraw the
10 three reports and then, of course, that complication does not arise any
11 further. But we leave that entirely in the hands of the Prosecution.
12 But once examined-in-chief on it, the Defence will have full
13 opportunities to prepare even if that would mean recalling him at a later
14 date.
15 Is this clear to the parties? Then we turn into closed session
16 and will remain for most of the day, if not all of the day, in closed
17 session to hear further testimony of these -- of the present witness.
18 [Closed session]
19 (redacted)
20 (redacted)
21 (redacted)
22 (redacted)
23 (redacted)
24 (redacted)
25 (redacted)
Page 14323
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11 Pages 14323-14408 redacted. Closed session.
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
Page 14409
1 (redacted)
2 (redacted)
3 (redacted)
4 (redacted)
5 (redacted)
6 (redacted)
7 (redacted)
8 (redacted)
9 (redacted)
10 (redacted)
11 [Open session]
12 THE REGISTRAR: We're in open session, Your Honours.
13 JUDGE ORIE: Thank you, Madam Registrar.
14 I would like to thank, first of all, everyone who assisted in by
15 spending five more minutes to avoid that a witness had to stay here for
16 72 hours and then remain in Court for a few minutes. Thank you, all, for
17 that.
18 We adjourn for the day and will resume on Monday the 15th of July
19 at 9.30 in the morning in this same courtroom III.
20 --- Whereupon the hearing adjourned at 2.19 p.m.,
21 to be reconvened on Monday, the 15th
22 day of July, 2013, at 9.30 a.m.
23
24
25