The Tempi trial continued on Monday 27 April at the University of Thessaly’s GEOPOLIS campus in Larissa.
The reading of the relevant statement caused strong reactions from both relatives of the victims and Zoe Konstantopoulou.
According to the State’s position, responsibility is attributed exclusively to the station master and an OSE inspector. This approach, as interpreted in the courtroom, leaves political superiors, as well as executives of OSE, the Railway Regulatory Authority and Hellenic Train, outside the scope of responsibility.
The statement sparked intense uproar, with relatives of the victims expressing their indignation, shouting, among other things, that ‘they are making fun of us right before our eyes’ and describing the State’s stance as provocative.
‘I want to see all the accused sitting in the chairs, to hear the accusations and to see these mothers, what harm they have done to these families. I want to bring Karamanlis before the natural judge’, the mother of a victim of the Tempi crime said.
Zoe Konstantopoulou then took the floor, also describing the move as provocative, while reactions also followed from defence lawyers representing the accused.
‘Some have succeeded in ensuring that the trial for the Tempi crime is conducted with the most violations of the rule of law that have occurred since the post-dictatorship period’, said the president of Course of Freedom.
The tension ultimately led to a temporary suspension of the proceedings, in order for procedural and bureaucratic issues to be resolved before the trial resumed.
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