Ali Riza Polat is the only accused present in the box to be suspected of complicity in crimes.

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Benoit PEYRUCQ / AFP

At the special assize court in Paris,

Ali Riza Polat will ultimately not follow his trial by videoconference.

On Monday, the Special Assize Court finally decided to postpone, for the fourth consecutive week, the trial of the January 2015 attacks. The president, Régis de Jorna, therefore decided not to make use of the order presented on Wednesday last by the Minister of Justice, Eric Dupond-Moretti, allowing the trial to continue without the main defendant, sick with Covid-19.

Twenty-five days after his contamination, and despite now negative PCR tests, Ali Riza Polat still suffers from vomiting and digestive problems.

The latest expertises estimated that the 35-year-old Franco-Turk, sent back for complicity in the crimes perpetrated by Amedy Coulibaly and the Kouachi brothers, was not in a condition to be extracted from the Health prison but that he could follow the pleadings, the indictment and even the verdict, by videoconference.

An announcement that caused both defense lawyers and those representing civil parties a real outcry.

Almost all agree on the fact that such a text goes against the rights of the defense.

This trial “cannot be remembered as the coffin of a number of rights,” insisted Mr. Arnaud Comte, who defends several victims of

Charlie Hebdo

.

And his colleague, Me Richard Malka, historical lawyer of the satirical weekly, to add: “I do not want to make Mr. Polat a victim.

This is how it will end if we ignore the decision of the Council of State.

"

Referral-freedom

As soon as this provision was announced, the union of criminal lawyers in fact filed a “summary liberty” before the highest administrative court in France against this order.

The appeal will be studied Tuesday afternoon and a judgment probably rendered Wednesday or Thursday.

Even beyond the rights of the defense, the lawyers of the eleven defendants present denounced an "illegal" text: Ali Riza Polat is no longer contagious, this text in no way aims to slow the expansion of the pandemic.

Only the prosecution was in favor of the use of videoconferencing.

"It is necessary to avoid endlessly suspending a hearing or being forced to postpone it to a later session", insisted the Advocate General, affirming that the "physical presence" of the accused was not "essential ".

Theoretically this trial should have ended on November 11, if it does resume next Monday, the verdict could be rendered on December 11.

“It will soon be six years, one more week, one week less.

We must continue to be patient ”, for his part estimated Me Jean Reinhart, who defends several civil parties of

Charlie Hebdo

.

Justice

January 2015 attack: The trial will resume Monday without the main defendant

Justice

January 2015 attacks: Two other defendants positive for Covid-19, the trial suspended for at least a week

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