Not many people have to look for reasons to support Ukraine in their battle against Puto's, I mean Putin's, invasion. Even so, I will offer one more.
A Ukranian prosecutor has done something law enforcement officials and the justice system in the US rarely, if ever, do. Prosecutor General Iryna Venediktova has filed to indict someone for killing a cyclist.
Of course, the circumstances are a bit different from the all-too-typical DUI hit-and-run or the MAGAt in a pickup truck who plows into an organized bike ride. So far, the victim in this case has been identified only as a 62-year-old Ukranian civilian who was riding his bike home in the Sumy region of the country when Russian militants shot him in February, shortly after Putain's, I mean Putin's, invasion begin.
Veneditkova announced her action Wednesday on social media websites. Her indictment of one of those soldiers--identified as Vadim Shishimarin--is the first of a soldier for killing a civilian during the conflict. If convicted, he could face 10 to 15 years or life, depending on the charge.
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| A cyclist in Debaltseve, Ukraine, 20 February 2015. Photo by Vadim Ghirda for AP. |
It's terrible that someone riding his bike didn't make it home because soldiers shot him. I feel bad for his loved ones, whoever they are. But it's good to know that a prosecutor is actually trying to bring his killers to account--even if she's charging one of them for a war crime (at least, as I understand the definition of that term) rather than a crime against a cyclist.
