Tommy review to begin on Wednesday

Tommy review to begin on Wednesday

Agus Maryono and Moch. N. Kurniawan, The Jakarta Post, Cilacap/Jakarta

The Cilacap District Court has responded swiftly to a review
request filed by convicted criminal Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra
by setting the first day of hearing for Wednesday, barely one
week after the news of the petition broke in the press.

Cilacap District Court President Sugeng Ahmad Judhi said on
Saturday that the judges would hear Tommy's explanations on the
review and examine new evidence before passing the case on to the
Supreme Court.

"If there is new evidence, we will swear in the witnesses,"
Sugeng said.

Tommy, the youngest son of former president Soeharto, is
currently serving a 15-year jail sentence at the Batu
Penitentiary on Nusakambangan island, Central Java, which is
under the jurisdiction of the Cilacap District Court, for
ordering the killing of Justice Syafiuddin Kartasasmita in 2001.

Central Jakarta District Court spokesman Judge Andi Samsan
Nganro said last Thursday that Tommy had filed for a review of
his 15 years' sentence. He did not reveal when Tommy or his
lawyers submitted the petition.

There is no special time frame for judges to hear a review
request, but the country's courts are notorious for their
sluggishness in handling law cases.

Sugeng said the hearing would be held in his court at the
request of the Central Jakarta District Court, which convicted
Tommy in August 2002. Tommy did not appeal the verdict.

Andi said the decision was also due to security reasons
resulting from Tommy's past record as a fugitive.

Topo Santoso, a law expert from the University of Indonesia,
said on Sunday it was possible to move the hearing from the
Central Jakarta District Court to the Cilacap District Court.

"The most important thing is that the new evidence can be
presented to the court ..." he said.

According to Judge Andi, Tommy's lawyers have new evidence to
present to the court. He, however, did not reveal what this might
be.

The Attorney General's Office had appointed Prosecutor Hasan
Madani to challenge Tommy's request for a judicial review.

Legal observers have warned of flaws in the Tommy verdict that
could lead to the Supreme Court overturning it.

One of the loopholes was the fact that police failed to secure
a court warrant before seizing firearms and ammunition believed
to belong to Tommy at different locations.

Under the prevailing law, evidence is inadmissible if it is
obtained without a warrant.

Legal experts also said that Tommy's absence during the
delivery of the verdict was another mistake that might influence
the ruling on appeal, or serve as a tactic to gain time for
"negotiations" that could lead to the verdict's annulment.

The Central Jakarta District Court delivered the verdict in
the absence of the defendant, who claimed to have diarrhea which
his doctors said was the result of stress.