Court rejects request to jail Navalny
(13 May 2015) RESTRICTION SUMMARY: AP CLIENTS ONLY SHOTLIST AP TELEVISION - AP CLIENTS ONLY Moscow, Russia - 13 May, 2015 1. Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny and his wife enter the courtroom 2. Cutaway of journalists 3. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Unnamed judge: "The court states that the presentation submitted to the court by the chief of the Moscow department of the FSIN (Federal Penitentiary Service) on revoking Alexei Navalny's suspended sentence shall not be satisfied and will extend the suspended sentence under the verdict of the Leninsky district court of the city of Kirov from 18 July, 2014, by three months." 4. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Alexei Navalny, Russian opposition leader: "I think everything will be repeated in two months. Today the Putin administration decided that at this moment the liabilities of my sentencing are too high." 5. Navalny outside court 6. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Alexei Navalny, Russian opposition leader: "I don't have the slightest doubt that this is an extending test of the public opinion, which we are observing - endless trials which we are tired of, endless questions that are ridiculed - whether Navalny will be sentenced or not. We understand this well. In this sense I am grateful that there is no let up in the public opinion, I am still protected. I once again thank everyone who supports me, my work, and the Anti-Corruption Fund." 7. Cutaway of journalists STORYLINE A Moscow court on Wednesday turned down authorities' request to turn a suspended sentence for opposition leader Alexei Navalny into prison time. Navalny was convicted in December of fraud and given a three-and-a-half-year suspended sentence. His brother was sent to prison on charges of defrauding a French cosmetics company in a verdict seen as a political vendetta by the Kremlin. Russia's prison service, backed by prosecutors, have appealed to convert Navalny's earlier suspended five-year sentence in a separate criminal case into a prison term, citing his recent misdemeanours such as Navalny's 15-day arrest for campaigning on the subway for an unauthorised rally. Navalny, a leading foe of President Vladimir Putin who spearheaded the 2011-2012 mass protests in Moscow, rejected the accusations and argued that they have no basis in Russian law. The Lyublinsky district court on Wednesday rejected the prosecutors' demand. Speaking to reporters after the verdict, Navalny said that official requests to put him behind bars are part of the Kremlin-driven efforts to hamper his opposition activities and also test the level of public support for him. =========================================================== Clients are reminded: (i) to check the terms of their licence agreements for use of content outside news programming and that further advice and assistance can be obtained from the AP Archive on: Tel +44 (0) 20 7482 7482 Email: [email protected] (ii) they should check with the applicable collecting society in their Territory regarding the clearance of any sound recording or performance included within the AP Television News service (iii) they have editorial responsibility for the use of all and any content included within the AP Television News service and for libel, privacy, compliance and third party rights applicable to their Territory. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter: / ap_archive Facebook: / aparchives Instagram: / apnews You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...
