Nicosia, Cyprus. The Nicosia district court is expected to decide by next week whether a confidential report will be made available to the defence in the case surrounding the 2019 suicide of 15-year-old Stylianos Constantinou.
Case background and charges
Stylianos took his own life in 2019, and subsequent investigations led to a trial involving 11 suspects over the circumstances of his death. A total of 218 charges have been brought against the defendants, including the teenager’s parents and nine employees of the social welfare services.
Defence request for report disclosure
The defence requested access to a report issued in November 2020, arguing that it is directly related to disputed issues in the case. The defence said the report constitutes relevant material for the adjudication of the case and that its non-disclosure violates the principle of equality of arms, as well as the prosecution’s obligation to disclose all relevant material, even if it does not support its position.
The defence also maintained that the issue constitutes a procedural obstacle and that the trial cannot proceed without disclosure of the document, as it was drafted by the next prosecution witness.
Prosecution objection
Prosecution lawyer Elena Konstantinou objected to the defence request. She argued that the document should be excluded from the discovery process because it constitutes internal communication between criminal investigators and the Law Office of the Republic and is therefore confidential and not evidentiary material.
What impact do you think the court’s decision on disclosure could have on the trial’s proceedings?