Tommy scolded for slouching in court, told to sit straight
Tommy scolded for slouching in court, told to sit straight
Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra, who is charged with murder, sat so
lazily during the trial at the Central Jakarta District Court on
Wednesday that the prosecutor asked the judge to order him to sit
properly to respect the court.
"Your honor, please warn the defendant to respect the court,
he is sitting impolitely," prosecutor Andi Rahman Asbar said.
Tommy, clad in a batik shirt, slouched with his feet extended
and head resting on the back of the seat.
"Defendant, please pay attention to the prosecutor's request,"
presiding judge Amirrudin Zakaria, said.
During the six-hour trial, Tommy even smiled and joked with
two of his lawyers, Elza Sjarief and Juan Felix Tambubolon.
Amirrudin never warned Tommy, but he repeatedly warned
journalists who stood up and blocked the view of visitors in the
packed courtroom. He also had to warn the observers repeatedly to
turn off their cellular phones.
Tommy is being tried for allegedly masterminding the murder of
Supreme Court Justice M. Syafiuddin Kartasasmita, who had
sentenced him to 18 months in jail for corruption. He is also
charged with illegal possession of firearms and ammunition as
well as flight from justice.
He could face the death penalty if convicted.
But on Wednesday he did not appear worried in the least.
Tommy looked calm when witnesses, Adj. Comr. Eddi Purbo
Susianto and Chief Brig. Badrun Simatupang, testified against the
defendant.
Both Badrun and Eddi said they, along with several other
officers, arrived at Cemara Apartments, which are owned by the
Soeharto family, to search for Tommy, who had been on the run for
a year.
Instead of finding Tommy, the police found several firearms
and a cache of ammunition. They also found many documents,
including two weapon licenses bearing Tommy's photographs, issued
by the police.
The apartments are managed by Tommy's employee Hetty Siti
Hartika, who was sentenced by the same court to four years in
jail for the same case earlier.
"I was the one who interrogated her. She told me that those
weapons and bullets belonged to Tommy. She also told me that
there were several other weapons in the apartment," Badrun said.
Prosecutors displayed four rifles, five guns, ammunition and
several documents before the panel of judges.
Tommy himself, with the presiding judge's permission,
questioned each witness with confidence.
"Did you check the fingerprints on the weapons with the Crime
Laboratory, ehm... (the police) Forensic Laboratory Center?" he
asked Eddi.
Eddi said he did not know.
"Did you wear gloves when you picked up the weapons?" Tommy
asked again.
"No," Eddi replied.
Although the Criminal Law Procedure allows a defendant to
question the witnesses, the court rarely gives the defendant the
right.
When judge Amiruddin asked Tommy whether he accepted the
witnesses' testimony, Tommy said, "None of the things found in
the apartment were mine, except for the documents. But the weapon
permits were not mine."
The hearing is set to resume next Wednesday, when the court is
scheduled to present Hetty and cross-examine her testimony
against Eddi and Badrun's testimony.
On the first hearing last week, Tommy's case was handled by
Amirrudin, Andi Samsan Nganro and I Ketut Gede. But on Wednesday,
there were two additional judges -- Herri Swantoro and Pramodana
K. Kusumah Atmadja.
Soon after he opened the trial, Amiruddin read out the
statement signed by the court's chief, Subardi, saying that five
judges would be used to try Tommy's case, due to public
attention, as they would be able to come to a verdict that was
more objective than one made by only three judges.
The addition of judges after a trial has commenced has never
occurred in Indonesian courts.