Viva la closedness? The High Council of Justice halted the broadcast on the dismissal of Halyna Yanenko
Today, the High Council of Justice (HCJ) was supposed to deliberate on the dismissal of judge Halyna Yanenko, but… it did not. Initially, the HCJ members decided to close the broadcast, and subsequently, they postponed the hearing of this case altogether.
“Achievements” of Halyna Yanenko, a judge of the Velyka Novosilka District Court:
- Assisted at least 18 drivers in avoiding responsibility for drunk driving.
- Undervaluation of property: for instance, in 2017, Yanenko’s husband allegedly purchased half of a 90 square meters office in Ternopil for $31.5 per square meter, while the market value was around $190 per square meter. In the 2020 declaration, the judge stated ownership of a 2009 Hyundai Accent car, which she acquired for $1283, despite such cars typically costing around six thousand dollars;
- Potential incompleteness of declaration: from 2018 to 2021, the judge’s daughter issued a power of attorney to the judge’s husband to manage all property, and since 2017, he had a power of attorney to administer his mother-in-law’s estate in Greece. However, no property was disclosed in the declarations.
For more details, see the opinion of the Public Integrity Council.
What exactly happened at the meeting and the reasons behind the adjournment remain undisclosed, as the HCJ satisfied Yanenko’s request not to broadcast the meeting. According to the judge’s representative, “health and private life” would be addressed. The members of the HCJ decided to fulfil that request. The decision caused immediate concern.
Such non-transparency of the HCJ is highly detrimental and puzzling, given the clear public interest in judges avoiding dismissal.
