Kahramanmaraş school attack case started, parents of the attacker were tried

KAHRAMANMARAŞ (AA) - In the case of the school attack in Kahramanmaraş, in which 1 teacher and 9 students lost their lives and 15 students were injured, the trial of the deceased attacker's father, the detained defendant Uğur Mersinli, and his mother, the detained defendant Peyman Pınar Mersinli, has started.

The defendants were connected to the hearing held at the Kahramanmaraş 3rd High Criminal Court via the Audio and Video Information System (SEGBİS) from the prison where they were detained.

Parties' lawyers, members of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey Şanlıurfa and Kahramanmaraş School Incidents and Digital Risks Investigation Commission, AK Party MPs İrfan Karatutlu and İsa Messi Şahin, and Provincial Director of National Education Turan Akpınar were present at the hearing. Families attended the hearing wearing t-shirts bearing the photographs of their lost relatives.

The families in the hall reacted when the defendant Uğur Mersinli, father of the attacker İsa Aras Mersinli, started his defense by expressing his condolences to the families.

In his defense, Mersinli claimed that the families of the attackers were sentenced to 1.5 years in similar incidents abroad, that the child found the gun himself, therefore it was not right for him to bear all the risk of the incident, and claimed that those who predicted that his son might be the attacker did not provide him with the necessary information.

The defendant stated that he filed a complaint against his son İsa Aras Mersinli, who died after the attack, for stealing his weapons and said:

"Guns are the weapons I have used throughout my professional life, I have not violated any law. My wife does not know how many guns I have, I do not keep a gun outside the bedroom closet. Let alone theft, I have been subjected to murder plans by my son. It is unlawful for me to be found at fault, I cannot be punished for someone else's crime. There would be no violence in our family, he did not grow up without love, he would hug and say 'I love you.' " he said.

The presiding judge asked, "Did you go to the psychologist together?" The defendant claimed that no suggestion was made and he was not told anything about it.

"Didn't you think that the child was mentally ill when you took him to the shooting range?" In response to the question, Mersinli claimed that the boy caused trouble at school but was normal at home and said, "He shot for the first time at the shooting range, 'Dad, you are a police officer, make me shoot too.' he said. The kid planned this before the shot. Shooting at the shooting range is not difficult. If I wanted to train him, I would have trained him, but that didn't happen. "If such a thing had happened, I would have trained terrorists in the mountains." he said.

Arguing that it is unfounded that Aras plays games on the computer every day, the defendant said, "Should I look at my son's computer every day thinking that he will attack the school? How could I know? In fact, I played these games too, we played these games together." he said.

Explaining that he received psychological treatment in 2012, the defendant said, "I have a psychological disorder report. I took my wife, my daughters, and if there was a need, I would take my son too." he said.

The defendant from Mersin gave the following answer to the question about how he learned about the incident:

"I first learned about the incident when I heard the sound of ambulances. I called a journalist friend and he said that there was an armed attack on the school. I was at peace because I knew that my son was at home and did not go to school that day. Then I went home, left the shopping package in my hand, and asked my wife, 'Where is the boy?' I said. And he said, 'He went to give books to his friends.' " he said, then I went to school thinking he was going to school."

Mother's defense

Detained defendant mother Peyman Pınar Mersinli said in her defense: "They see me as the mother of a murderer, I don't know what to say." he said.

The presiding judge asked, "Have you noticed that he has psychological problems?" To the question, the mother from Mersin said, "Yes, but I did not expect something this advanced, I am in shock of the incident. This is the first time I am on trial, I feel pain, my two daughters were left alone even though they had no interest." he said.

"I saw my son leaving the house, but how could I have thought that there would be a gun in the bag?" The defendant said that there were arguments at home from time to time, but it was not a big argument.

The defendant mother, from Mersin, said:

"Our bedroom is not always locked. No one enters anyone's room without permission. My wife was hiding guns in gun boxes on the closet. I have been an educator for 28 years. I also had students who went to counseling 10-15 times, I do not say this to defend my child. You say that he was a problem child, but he was not a child who was violent at home, he was not a child who broke windows or doors."

"Apart from nourishing your child physically, what have you done to nourish his soul?" To the question, the defendant said, "Whatever you did to your children, I did the same." he replied.

"Why did you send the message to your wife saying 'Make a psychiatric appointment'?" To the question, the defendant said, "I sent it because my wife was interested in it, they informed us that it was not an emergency, I am very sorry." he said.

Stating that she knew the location of the guns in the house but did not know their number, the mother from Mersin said that her mother-in-law and daughter were at home on the day of the incident and that she did not realize that the child had taken the guns because she was in a hurry to eat.

Stating that he learned in court about the women's underwear found in the perpetrator's closet, the defendant noted that he took his child to the beauty center to treat the black spots on his face.

Reminding that a psychiatric recommendation was made 5 months before the incident, the defendant answered the question why the interviews were not held: "We did research, we were looking from other provinces, and since it was not called urgent, my wife and I decided to find the best one and take it to him." He replied:

Stating that he did not see his child playing with a gun at home, the defendant stated that his wife controlled the guns, so he did not have information about the number of guns and why they were at home.

Complaint statements

Complainant Abdullah Cevdet Yeşil, the father of Abdullah Göktürk Yeşil, one of the students who lost his life in the attack, also spoke at the hearing and stated that the family could not make the child experience the love of parents.

Yeşil said, "If parents wanted, they could have taken their child to the best doctor. Maybe if the doctor's advice had been listened to, we would not be here. My son prayed and went to Friday prayers. He was a moral child. People outside would say the same. I wish you had raised such a child. I trust in supreme justice. We could not protect our children. Everyone who is responsible is guilty." he said.

Sonay Yeşil, the complainant's mother, stated that she carries with her the last clothes her son wore and said, "It will continue like this until he dies. How will these people live when they go out? How can a person not see the change in his child? Why did you give this child a gun instead of a pen? I am complaining until the end, I want the parents to be punished in the most severe way. We are longing for our child's 'parent' voice." he said.

Lawyer Furkan Kara, son of teacher Ayla Kara, who lost his life in the attack, stated that he came to the hearing as the son of a martyr and said:

"I think this case is a precedent. There has never been such a school massacre in Türkiye, the decision you make should be a precedent decision. While I was going to the hospital to diagnose my mother, my mother's blood got on my shirt and I still keep that shirt. I said to my wife, 'You definitely cannot wash this shirt.' I said. Because there is martyrs' blood on that shirt."

Other complainants demanded that the defendants receive the heaviest punishment.

The hearing continues with the statements of the plaintiff's lawyers.

The research commission is in the reporting stage

In his statement to journalists in front of the courthouse, İsa Messi Şahin, Spokesperson of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey Şanlıurfa and Kahramanmaraş School Incidents and Digital Risks Investigation Commission, stated that they were in Kahramanmaraş for the first hearing of the school attack that shocked the whole of Türkiye on April 15 and that they were following the case closely.

Stating that this incident caused a deep trauma not only in Kahramanmaraş but also in the whole of Türkiye, AK Party Istanbul Deputy Şahin reminded that the established commission investigated the reasons for the school attacks in both Kahramanmaraş and Şanlıurfa.

Şahin said, "We are researching the measures that should be taken to prevent similar events from happening again and the measures that should be taken in digital media. We have come to the end of the research commission's work. We are now in the report writing phase. Hopefully, we will put forward an important report as a recommendation regarding this important problem in Türkiye. We are faced with a multi-dimensional issue. Therefore, we cover the issue in all its aspects in our report. We also follow the legal process closely. Today, we are here to be with our families." he said.

Emphasizing that they attach importance to the decision of the court to be a precedent to prevent similar pain from happening again, Şahin noted that there is a dire situation and that the importance of the family institution should be drawn to this situation.

Zeki Arıtürk, the lawyer of Şuranur Kazıcı and Furkan Sancak Bala, two of the students who lost their lives in the attack, stated that the incident is a rare issue in the history of Turkey as well as in the history of Islam, and said that the case is important in terms of showing that grave events can occur as a result of families' alienation from their children, and how great a responsibility parents face.

Stating that state officials are following the case closely, Arıtürk added that a precedent decision is expected.

Ramazan Kara, the husband of Ayla Kara, the teacher who lost his life in the attack, explained that there was an opinion that the father of the attacker was trying to clear himself by filing a criminal complaint against his son, and said, "The defenses made so far show that everyone knows the situation of the attacker, only his parents do not. However, the mother is a teacher and the father is a member of the police. Therefore, they are people who can look into a person's eyes and understand his mood. We expect the criminals to be punished." he said.

From the indictment

In the 43-page indictment prepared by the Kahramanmaraş Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, the detained defendant Uğur Mersinli was accused of "killing with possible intent" against 10 people, "injuring with possible intent" of different qualities against 15 people and "violating the Law No. 6136 on Firearms, Knives and Other Tools", and the detained defendant Peyman Pınar Mersinli was accused of "causing the death and injury of more than one person through conscious negligence." He is requested to be punished for the crime of "causing".

In the armed attack carried out by student İsa Aras Mersinli at Ayser Çalık Secondary School in Kahramanmaraş on April 15, teacher Ayla Kara and 9 students lost their lives and 15 students were injured.