Malta journalist’s killers lose fight over rushed defense

The European Court of Human Rights rejected fair-trial complaints from George and Alfred Degiorgio, each serving 40 years for the 2017 car-bomb murder of Maltese journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia. The brothers argued Malta denied them chosen counsel and adequate preparation time after their original lawyer withdrew in August 2022, leaving court-appointed replacements barely 40 days to review over 11,000 pages before trial.

The brothers pleaded not guilty the morning trial opened, then accepted the 40-year plea deal that same afternoon. The Strasbourg court found two appointed lawyers, prior exposure to evidence, and psychiatric assessments sufficient safeguards, and dismissed the applications as clearly unfounded with no appeal available.

A Malta-based criminal lawyer, while calling the outcome defensible, noted the court's reasoning was potentially circular: the plea deal itself was used to undercut the complaint about the conditions that produced it. Four other men have been convicted or face appeal in the wider case, including alleged mastermind Yorgen Fenech, who was acquitted and is now facing a prosecution appeal.

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