Krasnodar Territorial Court refuses to rehabilitate Valery Bailo

The Court of Appeal has ruled to terminate the criminal case against Valery Bailo due to his death, although the son of the deceased Jehovah's Witness* insisted on his father’s rehabilitation.

The decision on the appeal complaint, which Valery Bailo managed to file before his death, was announced by the Krasnodar Territorial Court on April 22, a source from the Bailo's defence has told the "Caucasian Knot" today.

The court has ruled that Bailo's case should be terminated due to his death, although his son objected to such a ruling. "According to the position of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation, terminating a case on such grounds without close relatives’ consent is illegal," the defence has notes.

In his complaint, Valery Bailo insisted on his innocence and demanded that the sentence be overturned; his relatives, after his death, also insist on his rehabilitation.

After his death, Valery’s advocate has filed an application with the Investigating Committee of the Russian Federation (ICRF) demanding to check the actions of the administration of the SIZO (pre-trial prison) in Novorossiysk, where Bailo died. As the advocate pointed out, the SIZO staff ignored Bailo’s requests for help. He suffered from severe stomach pains, could not eat, and was severely emaciated by the time of his death, the advocate has recalled.

The defence has also noted that the verdict of the first instance court against Bailo should be overturned: the prosecution didn’t claim that he, a believer, "incited violence or religious hatred and enmity," although these actions are qualifying features of extremism.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on April 28, 2025 at 09:56 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.

*All the 396 Russian organizations of Jehovah's Witnesses were recognized as extremist, and their activities in Russia were banned by court decision.