Application from Yılmaz Güney's family: 'Retrial for the murder case, open the grave, perform an autopsy'

Sözcü columnist İsmail Saymaz wrote an article detailing the demands made by Yılmaz Güney's family following recent events.

ALLEGATIONS OF CHARACTER ASSASSINATION

Saymaz stated the following in his article:

"Güney’s wife Fatma, his daughter Güney, and his son Yılmaz Pütün applied to the court last week through their lawyer, Bişar Abdi Alınak. The petition requests a retrial of the case and that Mutlu’s grave be opened for an autopsy. This is because it is argued that the 1976 conviction has been used to portray Güney as a judge-killer, subjecting him to character assassination. It is alleged that the judges of that period 'rendered a decision that was a legal travesty through biased adjudication.'"

CLAIM THAT THE WEAPON DISCHARGED UNINTENTIONALLY

According to the petition, Mutlu was under the influence of alcohol that night. Mutlu and the relatives of Yumurtalık Assistant Prosecutor Tuncer Aslan attacked Güney four times. The weapon discharged during the fourth attack. At the time of the incident, Güney was at a height of 80 centimeters due to both a 20-centimeter height difference and a 60-centimeter staircase. The bullet should have traveled from top to bottom. However, the Forensic Medicine report stated, "It is understood from ballistic and geometric findings that the shot was fired from bottom to top or, at most, from a level parallel to the ground. By determining the geometric shape of the entry hole in the skull, it may be possible to determine the angle and direction of the shot."

Noting that the court initially asked where Mutlu was buried but later abandoned the idea of opening the grave, Saymaz wrote that the family's petition argues the incident occurred while Güney was defending himself, that Güney was injured in the arm when Mutlu attacked with a chair, and that the weapon discharged unintentionally because he lost his balance.

A portion of the application petition reads as follows:

"A decision that reveals that the weapon in Güney's hand went off as a result of him receiving a blow while defending himself against the victim who attacked with a chair, and that it was impossible for him to have fired with intent given the entry direction of the bullet, and therefore that he did not commit the crime of intentional homicide, will prevent him from being labeled a murderer and stop the ugly slanders that even go so far as to claim he killed the victim because he was a judge. These slanders are even used as a basis to imply that Güney's family and lawyers are murderers."

"The 'Yılmaz Güney is a Murderer Court' established 49 years ago stole from us Güney's life and the many works he would have contributed to cinema. Confronting this decision, which was the cause of his life coming to an end, is a major test for Turkey."