The High Council of Justice (GRP) renewed the disciplinary case against the judge of the Desnyanskiy District Court of Kyiv Svitlana Kolegayeva. It happened after the judge was fined in July 2024 for alcohol during service.
The story began in the summer of 2021, when Svetlana Kolyev, while intoxicated, got into an accident on an Audi car registered for her mother. She could not cope with control, which led to a collision with a tree and demolition of a pillar. Kyiv Patrol Police confirmed that Kollegayeva refused to undergo alcohol testing with the help of Drager and insisted on narcological examination.
In the Obolon District Court of Kyiv, the judge was found guilty of drunken driving, received a fine of 17 thousand hryvnias and a ban on driving during the year. Collei filed an appeal, but it was rejected.
In January 2024, a complaint was made to Kolylev that her behavior undermines confidence in the judicial system. The GRP agreed with the complainant and opened a disciplinary case. However, from February to April 2024, Collei was mobilized to military service, which, according to activists, is a common practice among judges to avoid punishment.
The GRP stopped the case because the judge could not explain her drunken behavior through military service. However, in July 2024, Kolyaev again came under the sight of law enforcement officers when she was fined for alcohol during service.
The High Council of Justice has renewed the disciplinary case after new circumstances. The GRP notes that the behavior of Collei, which continues even during its mobilization, contradicts the ethical standards of judicial activity and degrades the status of both judges and a serviceman. The GRP also noted that Kolyeva was using service to avoid disciplinary punishment.
The meeting of the GRP on this issue was postponed until September 11, 2024, as the judge's defender invited all complaints to Kolyaev.
Collei also distinguished herself against Maidan activists, trying to hide her activities after 2014. These circumstances additionally undermine the confidence in its professional activity and raise serious questions to its moral and professional level.
