Top court: Rath’s prolonged custody breached his rights

The Czech judiciary breached the fundamental rights of former prominent Social Democrat David Rath by prolonging his pre-trial custody, the country’s Constitutional Court has ruled. Mr Rath, who served as governor of Central Bohemia and MP, was taken into custody in May 2012 on charges of manipulating public tenders. He was released last November. The Constitutional Court said Mr Rath’s rights had been breached when courts ignored arguments he stated in repeated petitions demanding he be released. The trial against Mr Rath and his associates is ongoing; if convicted, the former politician faces 12 years in prison.