Turkey’s Constitutional Court has ruled that a lawyer’s house arrest over social media posts alleging judicial corruption violated his right to liberty and security because prosecutors failed to obtain the Justice Ministry’s authorization before investigating him.
In a unanimous ruling dated May 18 and made public by lawyer Eyyup Akıncı on Monday, the court found that his posts about alleged irregularities in cases he handled fell within the scope of his professional duties, even though they were made outside the courtroom. Article 58 of Turkey’s Attorneyship Law requires Justice Ministry authorization before prosecutors can investigate lawyers for alleged offenses related to their professional duties.
The case stemmed from social media posts Akıncı shared on October 16, 2023, alleging bribery and irregularities at the Küçükçekmece courthouse in İstanbul. He claimed that prosecutors reopened old cases to seek pretrial detention of suspects, judges routinely approved detention requests and appeals were rejected without proper review. He also alleged that bribes were paid to secure decisions for release.
Authorities launched a criminal investigation into Akıncı for allegedly disseminating misleading information under Article 217/A of the Turkish Penal Code. He was placed under house arrest on November 15, 2023. The measure was lifted on December 21, after 36 days. Akıncı was acquitted on July 5, 2024.
The court awarded Akıncı 125,000 Turkish lira (about $2,750) in compensation for nonfinancial harm and 42,220.60 lira ($930) in legal costs. It noted that his house arrest had already been lifted and ruled that financial compensation was sufficient to remedy the violation.
Allegations of judicial corruption also came under scrutiny in October 2023, when İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor İsmail Uçar sent a letter to the Council of Judges and Prosecutors detailing claims of bribery and favoritism, including allegations that judges made decisions in exchange for money.
Later that month, Turkey’s National Intelligence Organization (MİT) submitted a report to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan detailing allegations of corruption involving judges, prosecutors and lawyers, including claims that payments were made to influence pretrial detention and release decisions.
