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THIS TRIAL CHAMBER of the International Tribunal for the Prosecution of Persons Responsible for Serious Violations of International Humanitarian Law Committed in the Territory of the Former Yugoslavia since 1991 ("International Tribunal"),

BEING SEISED of a confidential "De Novo Motion to Sever the Trial on the Indictment of Stevan Todorovic from that of the Accused Milan Simic" filed by counsel for the accused, Stevan Todorovic, on 21 September 1999 ("Todorovic Motion for Separate Trial"),

NOTING the response of the Office of the Prosecutor ("Prosecution") filed on 4 October 1999,

NOTING that, on 18 November 1999, the Trial Chamber deferred consideration of the Todorovic Motion for Separate Trial pending the outcome of the contempt proceedings pursuant to Rule 77 of the Rules of Procedure and Evidence of the International Tribunal ("Rules") initiated against the accused, Milan Simic, and his previous lead counsel, Mr. Branislav Avramovic,

NOTING the judgement of the Trial Chamber in those proceedings, pronounced on 29 March 2000,

NOTING the "Request to Defer Decision on Motion for Separate Trial by the Todorovic Defence" filed on 3 May 2000 ("the Request to Defer"), requesting the Trial Chamber to defer ruling on the Todorovic Motion for Separate Trial until after the status conference scheduled for Wednesday 28 June 2000 on the ground that "should a trial date not be set, the Todorovic Defense would then invoke further argument . . . for a separate trial based on ‘speedy trial’ grounds",

NOTING that the accused, Stevan Todorovic, filed a previous application for separate trial on 11 February 1999, which motion was denied by the Trial Chamber in its Decision on Defence Motion to Sever Defendants and Counts issued on 15 March 1999 ("Decision"), on the ground that the "interests of justice are best served by a joint trial in this case",

NOTING that the reason stated by counsel for the accused, Stevan Todorovic, for filing the Todorovic Motion for Separate Trial, was to "renew all of the arguments heretofore advanced in support of the earlier motion" together with the "additional ground of the on-going Rule 77 Contempt Proceedings", arguing that any ruling "adverse to the Accused MILAN SIMIC and his counsel BRANISLAV AVRAMOVIC will ‘poison’ this Trial Chamber’s impartiality" and that a separate trial should be ordered "in that justice so requires",

CONSIDERING that Rule 82 of the Rules provides that a Trial Chamber may order that persons accused jointly be tried separately "if it considers it necessary in order to avoid a conflict of interests that might cause serious prejudice to an accused, or to protect the interests of justice",

CONSIDERING that the acquittal by the Trial Chamber of both the accused, Milan Simic, and his counsel, Branislav Avramovic, removes the only new ground relied upon by the accused, Stevan Todorovic, in the Todorovic Motion for Separate Trial, that of possible prejudice to the accused,

CONSIDERING that the other grounds on which the Todorovic Motion for Separate Trial is based have already been disposed of by the Trial Chamber in its Decision of 15 March 1999,

CONSIDERING that the Trial Chamber remains of the view that the interests of justice are best served by a joint trial in this case,

CONSIDERING also that, pursuant to Rule 72 of the Rules, motions for separate trial are preliminary motions that are required to be filed within thirty days of disclosure by the Prosecution to the defence of all material and statements referred to in Rule 66 (A)(i) and the accused, Stevan Todorovic, has not shown good cause pursuant to Rule 127 of the Rules for any enlargement of that time,

PURSUANT to Rules 72 and 82 of the Rules,

HEREBY DENIES both the Todorovic Motion for Separate Trial and the Request to Defer.

Done in English and French, the English text being authoritative.

_________________________________
Patrick Robinson
Presiding Judge

Dated this thirty-first day of May 2000
At The Hague
The Netherlands

[Seal of the Tribunal]

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