Being a judge is no easy task. Long and sometimes boring proceedings must be endured day in and day out. One judge in the town of Blagoveshchensk in Russia entertained himself with his cell phone and then simply fell asleep during the proceedings. While the judge, Yevgeny Makhno, denies sleeping, a viral video was posted on YouTube which clearly shows him doing just that: eyes closed and his head lolling to one side.
The BBC reported that "The videos were posted in January by Vladislav Nikitenko, a local activist and the legal aid of Andrey Nalyotov - whom Mr Makhno sentenced to five years in a penal colony for fraud." According to The Moscow Times, Makhno resigned after the video went viral and Nalyotov "will have a new trial on Feb. 14 [because] an appeal was lodged over the 'unjust' sentence."
According to The Examiner, "The videos have been confirmed to have been of Makhno, but the internal inspection claimed to have not had any proof the judge had fallen asleep during the hearing. Yevgeny Makhno will be able to take some exams and potentially be reinstated as a judge post-resignation."
If Makhno does return to his previous position, it will likely be as someone who is much more aware of his surroundings and the appropriate behavior for one in that position. A judge falling asleep during court is an oddity for sure, and one that will hopefully not be repeated. I was glad to see that Nalyotov will receive a new trial - five years of hard labor is a harsh sentence and ideally the judge who hands that down will have heard the entire case before deciding.
Without that quick-thinking legal aid who recorded the video and posted it to YouTube, Nalyotov might never have had a fair trial. The impact this viral video has had should not be taken lightly and one would be wise to never forget that in this modern era, nearly everything can and will be recorded and posted for the world to see.