Armenia’s Court of Cassation has decided to send the matter of whether to detain former Armenian President Robert Kocharyan, who has been charged with “usurping state power” during the March 2008 post-election public protests, back to the Court of Appeals for review.

Kocharyan had been slapped with a two-month detention order that was later overturned by the Court of Appeals on August 13. The court determined that he cannot be prosecuted for the March 1, 2008 post- election violence in Yerevan that killed ten.

Kocharyan’s defense team lodged several protests regarding the detention decision, arguing that their client had thus been deprived of his right to a free and fair trial.

The issue as to whether Kocharyan can be prosecuted for the violence that claimed the lives of eight civilians and two police officers in 2008 has been a contentious one, pitting law enforcement agencies like the Special Investigative Service (SIS), which wants to detain Kocharyan, and the courts.

The SIS has argued that Kocharyan should be detained because, otherwise, he could use his leverage to influence the judicial process.

On August 20, Armenia’s Prosecutor General’s Office filed a complaint with the Court of Appeals, protesting the Court of Appeal’s decision not to detain Kocharyan.

Despite the Court of Appeal’s decision that Kocharyan cannot be prosecuted due to presidential immunity, the SIS, on September 4, obligated the former president to sign an affidavit promising that he would not leave the country.

Earlier this week, Kocharyan’s lawyers lodged a case with the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), saying their client’s right to a fair trial and the presumption of innocence has been violated in Armenia.