Novgorod Case - Public Response

Public Response

Major Russian TV channels, radio stations and newspapers have covered the case in question. It has figured prominently in online discussions, particularly in the Livejournal blog system. Many well-known Russian public figures, engaged in politics, culture, and other areas of life, became involved in the case. They include:

• Maksim Kononenko, a TV host and blogger
• Aleksey Chadaev, Valery Ganichev, and Anatoly Kucherena, members of the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation
• Oleg Zykov, the Head of the Public Chamber Committee for the Protection of Children’s Rights
• Yevgeny Roizman, a Russian State Duma deputy
• Alexander Deyna, a Novgorod City Duma deputy
• Yegor Kholmogorov, a writer
• Konstantin Rybalov, a lawyer of the firm “Barshchevsky and Partners” (currently the attorney for the defence)

The discussions on this topic have raised numerous issues that go beyond the question of Antonina’s innocence, such as:

• whether it is permissible to leave young children unattended, even for a short time
• whether the preliminary incarceration of people who do not appear to be a threat to society is advisable;
• whether the testimony of one minor is sufficient to prosecute a murder case;
• whether it is permissible to influence government organizations, specifically the representatives of the investigation and prosecution, by raising public awareness of the case through the Internet;
• the imperfections in the existing system to enforce children’s rights in Russia;
• how the investigators conduct the (criminal) cases de facto and what are their real obligations in that respect under the Criminal Procedure Code of Russia currently in force;
• the interactions between the prosecution, the court and the defence;
• the general situation with crime in the Novgorod region.