Rarely do lawsuits cause serious public outcry. Moreover, even if the resonance was caused, it turns out to be short-lived and fades out even before the case is closed (this was the case, for example, with the notorious accident of Barkov). The Pussy Riot group, on the other hand, succeeded in the almost incredible - not disappearing from the public's field of vision for almost six months.
It is worth recalling that the conflict took place on February 21, 2012, when the girls ran to the solea of the temple and for 41 seconds sang the song "Mother of God, drive Putin away", after which they were taken into custody. This was not the first such action by Pussy Riot.
At the beginning of June, the situation was as follows: 7 volumes of 300 pages of the criminal case were transferred for consideration to all parties by September 1. The case was actually multiplied by three, in addition to the main investigation, the lawyers filed a complaint with the European Court of Human Rights, which was given the status of "priority for consideration" in the court itself. Similar letters were sent to the UN and to the Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation. In response, the prosecutor's office, in addition to the main charge of hooliganism, has singled out the accusation of “incitement to religious hatred” into separate proceedings, which is now being conducted separately. Basically, the activities of a rock group are classified as "hooliganism motivated by religious hatred."
On June 26, Lieutenant Colonel of Justice Rachenkov, responsible for the investigation, was promoted, which caused a serious public outcry. This, among other things, reminded the masses that the case had not yet been closed: the next day, information appeared on the worldwide network about an open letter to the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation, under which more than 150 famous personalities left their signatures - from Bondarchuk to Shenderovich. The requirement was to remove any criminal prosecution from the girls.
Meanwhile, already on June 30th, a shocking decision was made: the term for familiarization with the case materials was shifted from September to July 4th. The trial itself is scheduled for July 20 (the Pussy Riot blog claims that this decision is "a response to the excessive attention shown to the case").
According to polls, the society, although it does not approve of the scandalous antics, is confident that the punishment (up to 7 years in prison) is in no way commensurate with the crime. The public outcry is getting stronger every day. Lawyers also partially agree with the illegitimacy of the conclusion, recalling that the term of imprisonment for hooliganism is 15 days. In addition, the girls' official blog cites government sources hinting at a "positive outcome of the case."
The only thing you can be completely sure of is that hundreds of thousands of those who are not indifferent will be watching the high-profile case, and the decision made on the 20th will in no way satisfy all parties to the conflict.
