In a reversal of the facts regarding the release of Alexandros Giotopoulos, the Supreme Court, ruling that the necessary substantive conditions were not met.
In a detailed ruling, based on the fact that Alexandros Giotopoulos never showed remorse for the crimes for which he was convicted or even good behavior, the Supreme Court overturned his release order, sending the long-term 17N convict back to prison and ordering a new trial.
According to reports, the competent Judicial Council of the Supreme Court, which yesterday overturned the ruling of the Piraeus Court of Appeals regarding the conditional release of “Lambros” of 17N, is basing its ruling on the formal and substantive legal requirements for the release of Al. Giotopoulos, arguing that those requirements were not met. In short, it is stated that the Piraeus judges were wrong to grant his request, since “their decision lacked ‘the required specific and thorough reasoning,’ especially since there were relevant prosecutorial motions to dismiss, as well as the ruling of the court of first instance, which had rejected the claims of the incarcerated prisoner serving a severe sentence.
The Supreme Court placed particular emphasis on Alexandros Giotopoulos’s progress during his years of incarceration, arguing “that while the prisoner did focus his attention on his education, managing to improve his academic performance, however, his studies reflect the concept of outwardly good behavior rather than good conduct.”
In short, according to the ruling, neither his studies nor the absence of disciplinary infractions during his years in prison are equivalent to acceptance of the rules of the legal order—a requirement necessary to demonstrate the serious offender’s moral reformation and rehabilitation. In fact, the ruling also refers to Alexandros Giotopoulos’s public statements through his letters, which, according to the ruling, are inconsistent with the rehabilitation of the 17N prisoner.
As for the moral transformation of Alexandros Giotopoulos, special mention is also made of the extent to which he has repented during his years of incarceration, which would attest to his break with his criminal past. As noted, the convicted felon has never shown remorse, a point also highlighted in the ruling of the Piraeus Court of Appeals, which acknowledged that the convicted man “never accepted his actions, nor did he express remorse.”
At the same time, the Supreme Court addressed the legal framework concerning repeat offenders, concluding that Alexandros Giotopoulos must actually serve the maximum sentence of 25 years.
Specifically, the Supreme Judicial Council, citing the new Penal Code—which “for the first time explicitly addressed this issue to fill the legislative gap”— the issue—and as it concludes , the actual 25-year sentence also applies to crimes committed before July 1, 2019.
