I'm willing to pay my debts, not serve time.

      The hearing began with the continuation of the reading of Anton Dolgikh’s testimony. The defendant confirmed that he had given testimony voluntarily, but noted that at the time of the interrogations he did not know that the lawyer appointed to him did not have the right to represent him. He also said that he was allegedly pressured in the pretrial detention center to renounce his current counsel, Violetta Volkova. After the parties finished presenting evidence, the judicial investigation was declared complete. The court moved on to closing arguments.

      For the record, Dolgikh was charged under Article 291.2 Part 1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (petty bribery), Article 285 Part 3 (abuse of official powers with grave consequences) and Article 33 Part 4 (instigation).

      In his closing argument the state prosecutor asked that Dolgikh be relieved of liability under the petty bribery charge due to the statute of limitations, but that punishment be imposed for the remaining counts. According to the prosecutor, the “heightened public danger of the act” requires actual imprisonment. He proposed sentencing the lawyer to 1 year and 9 months in a settlement-type penal colony and keeping him in custody until the sentence comes into force.

      Anton Dolgikh replied that he had committed neither instigation nor abuse of office. According to him, the method of passing letters through the windowsill was suggested by ward chief Galysheva to avoid complaints from residents. “I did not give illegal instructions; I acted within the law,” the defendant emphasized. He also said that he wrote a voluntary confession himself when he realized his actions could be misinterpreted.

      Dolgikh stressed that he does not consider himself a corrupt person and is ready to accept responsibility in the form of a fine, but not imprisonment.

      In her closing argument, defense attorney Violetta Volkova demanded that both criminal cases be dismissed, calling their initiation illegal. According to her, the petty bribery statute is a special provision in relation to the abuse-of-office statute, and charging under both articles contradicts the law. “Everything that is not prohibited is permitted. A person cannot be prosecuted for the exercise of lawful rights,” Volkova said.

      During her speech the courtroom was tense: the defense counsel spoke loudly, and Anton’s mother, who was present at the hearing, could not hold back her tears.

      In his final statement Dolgikh again asked the court to mitigate the preventive measure. He reminded the court that he has a large family and appealed to the judge: “I beg you, make the right decision.”

      Anton Dolgikh’s sentence will be announced on November 19 at 9:40.