The trial of 36 defendants in the Tempi railway tragedy case continues today at the Larissa Three-Member Criminal Court of Appeals, which convenes in a specially configured hall at the “Gaiopolis” conference center of the University of Thessaly. Today’s session focuses on the Greek state’s declaration to support the prosecution for the first time. This move was pre-announced during the previous session on April 6 but was not implemented due to time constraints.
This marks the first time the state will declare representation in this specific case, as it had not taken such action during the investigation phase. What draws particular interest is whether the representation will be against all defendants or only some of them, and the reasoning behind this decision.
Additionally, representations are expected to be declared by several more victims’ relatives and injured parties who were unable to do so during the previous session due to time constraints. The number of representations is expected to exceed the 232 included in the indictment. Once all representations are completed, defense attorneys for the 36 defendants are expected to submit their objections regarding prosecution support, whether from victims’ families, injured parties, and passengers on the fatal train, or from the Greek state.
The court has reserved the right to respond to the request by defense attorney for victims’ families, Zoe Konstantopoulou, for audiovisual coverage and broadcast of the trial, which the prosecutor has already objected to. The court has announced it will convene again on Tuesday, April 28.
