Senators demand Bradáčová review: father of three-year-old Viktorka re-charged with manslaughter instead of murder
Over twenty senators have appealed to chief prosecutor Lenka Bradáčová regarding the change in charges against the father of three-year-old Viktorka, from murder to manslaughter under the influence of alcohol.
Senators demand investigation into change of charges in case of deceased Viktorka
A group of more than twenty senators has requested that chief prosecutor Lenka Bradáčová have her office investigate the conduct of police in the case of the death of a three-year-old girl. According to iDNES.cz, the senators are responding to a significant turn in the case — the police's re-charging of the girl's father from murder to the criminal offence of manslaughter.
Expert report as key argument
Police justified the change of charges based on conclusions from an expert report. According to a police spokesperson, the report concluded that the father was under the influence of drugs at the time of the incident and was not of sound mind. Based on this finding, the original charge of murder was replaced with a less severe legal classification.
Senators concerned over procedure
The re-charging has alarmed dozens of lawmakers, who therefore appealed directly to the leadership of the Office of the Prosecutor General. In their request to Bradáčová, the senators demand that the office assess whether the police's procedural approach was correct and whether the change in legal classification corresponds to the facts established.
The case of the death of three-year-old Viktorka provoked a strong reaction in Czech public opinion. The re-charging of the girl's father now reopens the question of whether a state of unsoundness of mind caused by one's own voluntary consumption of addictive substances can have an effect on the legal assessment of a serious violent crime.
Source: iDNES.cz