Local Governments in Russia want to Handpick Juries

Trial by jury in Russia is now under threat. Moscow and other cities are calling for the authority to pick jury members, which would relinquish the independence of the judiciary. The pro-Kremlin mayor of Moscow Yuri Luzhkov, sent a letter to the lower house of the Russian Parliament asking for the power to select juries for trials. The Kremlin backed majority in the Parliament would most likely support the measure, although President Medvedev has said previously appreciated the Western style jury systems that have been put in place since 1993 after the collapse of the Soviet Union. -Breitbart

It would be no suprise to see the independent jury system die. Granting this authority will allow the Siloviki to convict all of its domestic enemies more easily. Russia under Vladimir Putin, has been eroding every liberal institution that the country has. This might be its last free bastion.