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Jessica's lawyer pleads for Oz police testimony to be put aside
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Murder defendant Jessica Kumala Wongso (center) sits with her team of attorney during a hearing of her murder trial at the Central Jakarta District Court on Sept. 26. (Antara Photo/Rosa Panggabean)
D
efense attorney Otto Hasibuan has pleaded to the judges of the Central Jakarta District Court to exclude the testimony of an Australian police officer in the murder trial of his client, Jessica Kumala Wongso.
The testimony of prosecution witness New South Wales Police officer John Jesus Torres, which was presented during a hearing on Sept. 26, claimed that Jessica, who is accused of murdering her friend Wayan Mirna Salihin, had 14 recorded criminal offenses in Australia.
"The record, which was read out as part of the trial, did not have any relationship with Mirna's death, therefore it should be excluded from consideration," Otto told the judges in a defense statement on Thursday.
Jessica's lawyers in Australia have received legal documents from the New South Wales Police that show Jessica does not have a criminal record there, he said. The documents had also been validated by Indonesian General Consulate in Sydney, which proved that Jessica's criminal record was clean, he added.
In Jessica's defense plea, Otto claimed that Torres was only a 'testimonium de auditu' witness because he did not directly witness Jessica's conduct in Australia. According to the Criminal Law Procedures Code (KUHAP), such testimony could not be considered by the judges, he said.
In the hearing, Torres revealed that Jessica had experienced some problems in Australia, which were mostly related to her ex-boyfriend. According to a police report, her ex-boyfriend had filed for a restraining order against Jessica.
Torres also said that Jessica had reportedly tried to commit suicide a couple of times leading to her involuntary admission to the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital. (rin)
