Pussy Riot is a scandalous Russian punk-rock band that gained popularity after the Punk Prayer event at the Cathedral of Christ the Savior. For their act, the girls were sentenced to two years, which caused considerable protests among the supporters of "Pussy Riot".
The girls were put on the wanted list on February 26, a few days after their performance at the temple. Initially, the police managed to detain Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Maria Alekhina. Three weeks later, the third member of the group, Ekaterina Samutsevich, ended up in the pre-trial detention center. In early summer, the girls were charged with hooliganism motivated by religious hatred, carried out by a group of persons in a preliminary conspiracy. At the same time, the participants of "Pussy Riot" themselves claim that the musical composition they performed in the church is acutely political and in no way should offend the feelings of the Orthodox.
After repeated extensions of the arrest and lengthy preliminary hearings, on August 17, 2012, Judge Marina Syrova finally delivered a verdict to Pussy Riot. Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, Ekaterina Samutsevich and Marina Alekhina will spend two years in a general regime colony. Taking into account the term that they have already served in the pre-trial detention center, the girls should be released on March 4, 2014.
After the verdict was passed, the defense of Pussy Riot, represented by Nikolai Polozov, Mark Feigin and Violetta Volkova, filed a cassation appeal with the Khamovnichesky Court, where the trial took place. According to the girls' lawyers, if the verdict is not overturned, further complaints will follow to the Supreme and Constitutional Courts, as well as to the Strasbourg Court of Human Rights. Consideration of the application is planned to be held in late September - early October 2012. Volkova, Feigin and Polozov hope that after hearing the case, the members of the controversial punk group will be immediately released.
Supporters of Pussy Riot continue to hope that the president of the Russian Federation will personally pardon the girls and allow them to return to their families and children. However, when the lawyer Violetta Volkova discussed this theoretical situation with the group members, Nadezhda, Ekaterina and Maria flatly refused to leave the colony ahead of schedule. If Pussy Riot is not cleared of all charges, they plan to serve their term in full.
