In 2022, courts in Russia set a record for closed trials

In 2022, Russian courts set a record for the number of criminal cases that were considered behind closed doors. Media representatives and listeners were not allowed to attend. This is reported by “Mediazona” with reference to the data of judicial statistics.

In 2022, Russian courts considered 733,383 criminal cases, 25,587 of which were considered behind closed doors. As “Mediazona” clarifies, compared to 2018, this figure has doubled – then 13,172 cases were considered in closed mode. According to statistics, a sharp jump in such judgments occurred in 2020. Then the number of closed processes was 23,588, although in 2019 there were 16,675 of them.

At the same time, the Constitution of Russia guarantees an open trial for all interested parties. According to the law, the case can be closed only if it is a state secret, it is conducted in relation to the case of the accused under the age of 16 or connected with crimes of a sexual nature.

As the publication clarifies, in 2022 the number of convicted persons under the age of 16 was 4,101, and the number of persons convicted of sexual crimes was 7,603. 100 verdicts were handed down in cases of treason, espionage and disclosure of state secrets. In total, the number of verdicts in cases whose processes can be closed is less than half of all cases considered in private.

However, according to the law, the judge can close the session to “ensure the safety of the participants in the trial and their relatives.” “Mediazona” notes that this wording is used to remove listeners and mass media from high-profile criminal cases.