Thread: Yala Judge shoots himself in court after being forced to change verdict

A judge, Mr. Kanakorn Pianchana, shot himself in the chest in an apparent suicide attempt after delivering a verdict in Yala’s provincial court yesterday.
Spokesman for the court said that Mr. Kanakorn is now out of danger after being rushed to the provincial hospital, adding that the judge might be suffering from stress.
A statement, purportedly written by Mr. Kanakorn, has been widely shared on social media and claims that he had been approached by someone who forced him to change the not guilty verdicts against five defendants, condemning three of them to death and sending another two to prison, despite the lack of sufficient evidence to convict any of them.
The judge claims that other junior judges in the court of first instance, like him, are also subjected to the same pressure.
He complained about the unfair treatment of judges in the court of first instance, such as working after office hours to write the verdicts without overtime pay and being forbidden from working in a second job to earn extra income, unlike doctors who can work at their own clinics after finishing their work in hospitals.
In the statement, the judge also urged lawmakers to amend the judicial charter to prevent senior judges from screening the verdicts of the judges in the court of first instance before they are delivered in court.

Kanakorn Pianchana acquitted five Muslim men of murder on Friday before calling for a fairer judiciary.He then recited a legal oath, pulled out a pistol and shot himself in the chest.
But the judge survived and was rushed to hospital where he is recovering from his injuries.
A statement believed to have been written by the judge before giving his ruling suggests that his suicide attempt could have been related to alleged interference in the case.
What happened in court?

The judge worked at the Yala court in the insurgency-hit south of Thailand.
After acquitting the five men of murder and firearms offences, he addressed the court with an impassioned speech that he broadcast live on Facebook.
"You need clear and credible evidence to punish someone. So if you're not sure, don't punish them," he said.
"I'm not saying that the five defendants didn't commit the crimes, they might have done so," he added.
"But the judicial process needs to be transparent and credible... punishing the wrong people makes them scapegoats."
The Facebook feed then cut but people in court said the judge read out a legal oath in front of the former Thai king's portrait before whipping out a pistol and shooting himself.
He was rushed to hospital where he is reported to be in a stable condition.
Why did he do it?

It is not fully clear why Judge Pianchana attempted to take his own life.
Suriyan Hongvilai, the spokesman of the Office of the Judiciary, told the AFP news agency he shot himself due to "personal stress".
But local media reported that the judge could have been referring to the case he had just ruled on.
A statement believed to have been written by the judge and posted to Facebook before he shot himself stated that he had been pressured to find the men guilty despite lack of evidence.
"At this moment, other fellow judges in Courts of First Instance across the country are being treated the same way as I was," he wrote.
"[If] I cannot keep my oath of office, I'd rather die than live without honour."
Criticism of the judicial system by judges is extremely rare in Thailand.
Rights groups have alleged that security forces trump up charges against Muslim suspects in the Malay-Muslim majority region.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-49945636

A man of honour indeed.

Of course, many in the establishment here would simply not understand his motivation.

Originally Posted by Seekingasylum

A man of honour indeed.

Of course, many in the establishment here would simply not understand his motivation.

The nature of the establishment aren't beholden to any such civil morality base.
Their ethos holdings perpetuate without a care or concern of judgement.

And of course trajectories vacillate depending on whom isosceles.

Originally Posted by cyrille

And of course trajectories vacillate depending on whom isosceles.

Trumbulating compistications.

I expect this whistleblowing to be the result of a mere "misunderstanding" and/or it would trigger a defamation/contempt of court from the judge accused to pressure him for a guilty verdict, and maybe for tarnishing the image of the court...The institution may yield to social networks pressure/public outcry but it takes great pressure to make them give up as the Doi Suthep scare story showed it.