Czech nurse acquitted of multiple murder charges

Prague, April 13 (ČTK) - Nurse Vera Marešová, whom a court acquitted of the murders of six patients in a hospital in January 2016, and who spent more than a year in custody, will receive CZK 2.27 million in compensation for unlawful prosecution, a court of appeals ruled today.

The compensation, in this case, is much higher than is usually paid in similar cases.

The acquitted woman, dubbed by Czech media as “The Nurse of Death,” originally demanded five million.

In 2014, Marešová was charged with killing six patients in a hospital in Rumburk, North Bohemia. The investigation was triggered by the death of one of the patients. The law enforcement bodies brought murder charges against Marešová, who was suspected of having murdered the victim with potassium, based on expert opinion.

She initially faced a life sentence. On Wednesday, all courts acquitted the nurse, concluding that no evidence proved that any murders had occurred. Marešová said today's decision was only partially satisfactory to her.

"The time that has elapsed was very complicated. Now I am relatively better off. All the ongoing trials reawaken what one wants to forget again. But I am happy with the outcome," she added.

Marešová's lawyer said they would still consider filing an appeal.

Previously, the Justice Ministry paid out CZK 1 million to Marešová for unlawful prosecution.

The Prague Municipal Court was handling an appeal lodged by the state that disagreed with having to pay out another 1.57 million to the nurse. The appeals court panel only reduced the compensation by CZK 300,000.

The ministry will have to pay court costs and interests that amount to another half a million to Marešová, her legal counsel said.

Marešová also criticized the media's role in her case believing the presumption of her innocence to have been disrespected from the beginning.

She sued several media companies, claiming compensation counted in millions of crowns from each. She received CZK 1.2 million from the Nova television station, CZK 900,000 from the CNC publishers, which own the Blesk and Aha tabloids, CZK 700,000 from the Mafra publishers, and CZK 250,000 from Vltava Labe Media.