Chernikova Yulia

Judge of the Chertanovsky District Court. Former deputy chairman of the Chertanovsky District Court of Moscow.

Carrying out political repressions using her official position.

In 2014, judge Chernikova received the case of Daniil Konstantinov, a political activist arrested in a trumped-up murder case after refusing to collaborate with the police counter-extremism department (Center E). Konstantinov was arrested on March 22, 2012, and charged with the murder of a stranger. At the time of the murder, Konstantinov had an irrefutable alibi. On this day, his mother had a birthday, which Daniil Konstantinov celebrated in a restaurant with his wife, parents, and numerous guests. Despite the stated alibi, Konstantinov spent 2 years and 7 months in a pre-trial detention center, and Center E and FSB continued to put pressure on the court.

The first trial in the Konstantinov case ended with the return of the criminal case to the prosecutor to correct the deficiencies and violations. The deficiencies and violations identified during the first trial were not eliminated, however, the case was again referred to courtю Judge Chernikova ignored the existing violations and proceeded to the consideration of the case. At the hearing, the judge Chernikova repeatedly demonstrated an accusatory bias, helping the prosecution side and obstructing the defense side, conducting interrogations of witnesses in a biased manner, rejecting the most pressing questions of the defense side, preventing the submission of some evidence by the defense side, refusing to satisfy the defense’s requests for investigative actions that could confirm the defendant’s testimony.

Despite all the efforts of Judge Chernikova, Konstantinov’s guilt was not proved. On the contrary, the accused's alibi was fully confirmed, both by the testimony of witnesses and other evidence in the case. That all proved the innocence of Konstantinov. However, Judge Chernikova did not dare to acquit him. Instead, she found Konstantinov’s guilt in the murder unproven but accused him of hooliganism, which he also did not commit.