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Three judges with the High Court of Cassation and Justice have overturned a 4-year prison sentence for former Social Democratic Party senator Dan Sova and gave him a suspended sentence, arguing that in a legal system emphasis should be placed on the educational aspect of criminal sanctions and not on the punitive side, the primary objective being to correct the anti-social behaviour of offenders.
In the reasoning of the decision published on Monday by the Supreme Court, the three judges state that Sova is accused of high-level corruption - a complex phenomenon that "undermines public confidence in state institutions, and in extreme cases can lead to a lack of recognition of the legitimacy of the state, leading to political and economic instability".
The judges define corruption as a "constant threat to good governance, undermining the economic and social progress of the country and ultimately a better life for all citizens of a country", but argue that an offender should be punished as close as possible to the time of committing a criminal offence and mention the long duration of the trial in Dan Sova's case.
The court shows that the offence of influence peddling committed by Dan Sova lasted for a long period of time, from 2011 to 2014, in connection with a state-owned enterprise, for the benefit of a person who was holding public office, being a senator, the "commission" paid by the law firm representing half of the payments made by CET Govora, the largest producer of electricity and heat in Valcea County.
Dan Sova's case has been tried practically twice, with the involvement of the Constitutional Court of Romania (CCR). Thus, in June 2018, he was sentenced to 3 years imprisonment, but was released after six months, his sentence being then annulled based on a decision of the CCR.
In its reasoning, the Supreme Court emphasises the "educational" aspect that a punishment for corruption must have, by "correcting" the behaviour of offenders.
The judges recalled that Dan Sova served six months in prison in the first trial, mentioning "the creation of concrete possibilities for the social reintegration of the defendant".
Following this "educational aspect", the judges ordered that Dan Sova will perform unpaid community service for a period of 120 days in the Brasov County Center for Resources and Educational Assistance or the General Directorate of Social Assistance and Child Protection Brasov.AGERPRES
