The Cairo Appeal Court refused on Monday a request by the defense team of ousted President Mohamed Morsi to replace one of the sitting judges in the case of the Ithadeya presidential palace clashes, reported the Dostour newspaper.
The location of the session was changed to the Non-commissioned Police Officers Institute in Tora instead of the Supreme Constitutional Court after Minister of Justice Nayer Othman expressed security concerns, Dostour reported.
Morsi’s defense lawyers demanded that one of the judges be changed following a series of comments he made on television regarding the trial, the newspaper reported.
Defense lawyer Al-Sayed Hamed said the court’s refusal of their request “was expected because the team lacked strong reasons to change the judge,” Youm7 reported.
The Cairo Criminal Court is expected to resume the trial of Morsi and other 14 leading members of Muslim Brotherhood on charges of inciting violence during the clashes outside of the Ithadeya presidential palace in 2012. The trial was delayed by the request for new judges.
The court will hear the report of the plaintiffs and a “committee of experts,” Hamed said, adding that he will decide whether to request witnesses after hearing testimonies from the prosecution’s witnesses.
The appeal court’s verdict included fining leading member of the Brotherhood Essam el-Erian 10,000 EGP, and confiscating the 300 EGP in bail that he has already paid to submit his request to refer the case to another court, Dostour reported.
