Court quashes expat’s 10-year jail with hard labor in drugs case
Woman acquitted of drinking alcohol in public
KUWAIT CITY, Dec 3: The Court of Appeals overturned the ruling of the Criminal Court which sentenced an expatriate to 10 years in jail with hard labor, so the expatriate was acquitted of possessing hashish and brain stimulants with the intention to consume and sell.
Attorney Elaf Al-Saleh, who represented the expatriate in court, argued that her client was arrested and searched illegally without a warrant from the Public Prosecution. She pointed out the warrant presented by the plaintiff was issued after the arrest and search of her client, adding that her client made a confession under duress.
Meanwhile, the Court of Appeals, presided over by Judge Rajeeb Al-Rajeeb, acquitted a female expatriate of drinking alcohol in public as it overturned the verdict of a lower court that sentenced her in absentia to one month in prison and deportation. The ruling was issued although the legal period of 20 days to appeal expired one year ago.
The Public Prosecution charged the woman with consuming alcohol at a public place in Salhiya. Her lawyer, Attorney Hanaa Bojarwa, presented substantial evidence that her client is qualified to appeal even after a year since the legal period to appeal ended.
Bojarwa argued that the former lawyer failed to notify the client on the absentia ruling against her. She then presented documents to the court, including a copy of the complaint that her client filed against her former lawyer, accusing him of negligence and miscarriage of justice due to the manner he handled the case. This is in addition to the fact that no traces of alcohol were found in her client’s blood as per the medical report, so the verbal testimony of the arresting police and technical evidence presented by the Criminal Department were contradictory.
Bid to dispose solid waste: Kuwait Municipality Director Eng Ahmed Al-Manfouhi has unveiled a plan to implement a mechanism for disposing solid waste safely, without affecting the environment and in line with international standards.
In a press statement, Al-Manfouhi reiterated there is a plan to use solid waste as an economical resource for generating power. He said the Municipality’s strategy in this context includes the establishment of a garbage recycling plant with a capacity of one million tons per year and it will be the first of its kind in the Middle East.
Al-Manfouhi added a delegation will visit Spain soon to acquire knowledge on advanced incineration methods and using solid waste for producing electricity.
Meanwhile, Deputy Director General of Projects Department at the Municipality Eng Nadia Al-Shreda stressed the importance of studying the advanced garbage disposal experiences in other countries and holding training courses to implement the project in a scientific manner.