Uzbek laws stress that death sentences are not applied...

Uzbek laws stress that death sentences are not applied to convicts who are found to have a mental disorder. But Tamara Chipunova, head of the Mothers Against Death Penalty independent human rights organization in Tashkent, believed that Abror Isayev, who was sentenced to death by a Tashkent regional court on charges of premeditated murder and robbery in December 2002 and who had become mentally ill during the investigation, could face death. According to the courts investigation, three people: Abror Isayev, his sister and her husband killed their relatives in order to rob them. But the main blame was apportioned to Isayev. Chipunova said that he had been tortured to admit his guilt and become mentally ill as a result. The medical examination conducted at the beginning of the investigation testified that the convict was in good mental health. The judge who presided over the trial reportedly thought that the defendant's gibberish and strange behaviour before the court was purposeful and issued him a death sentence.