Justice Archives - St Gregory's Foundation

Mkurnali fights to help Vlad continue his studies

Posted on 5th May 202514th July 2025 By Sarah.SGF

In Tbilisi, Georgia, we continue to support Mkurnali’s legal programme and the shelter that truly feels like home for former street children and families. Inga, a lawyer who defends young people in court, shared Vlad’s story, and Nino, Mkurnali’s director sent us news about the shelter.

Vlad, one of Mkurnali’s beneficiaries, reached out for Inga’s help. He signed up for vocational school but got accused of faking his high school diploma because of missing official stamps and a strange signature. His old school had merged with another, making things harder to confirm.

Mkurnali wins vital healthcare for a former resident

Posted on 28th February 202428th February 2024 By Sarah.SGF

This crumpled mess was all that was left of the car Eka was travelling in, when it was hit by a trailer moving on the opposite side of the road. The car overturned and fell off the side of the road. The other driver, thinking that everyone in it was dead, fled the scene. Eka was a former resident at Mkurnali‘s homeless shelter in Tbilisi, Georgia. Without Mkurnali’s legal help, she would never have won the compensation she so desperately needed to pay for her healthcare after the accident.

Acquitted for New Year

Posted on 19th February 202119th February 2021 By Sarah.SGF

In 2020 Mkurnali defended 37 cases. Twelve of these young people, who faced probable conviction were found completely innocent thanks to our lawyer’s intervention. Twelve received a suspended sentence, and the others were all given much-reduced sentences. We have the story of one of these cases for you today.

Mamuka has served a sentence for theft before, but since his release he has changed dramatically. He has married, had a child, trained as a heating installer and worked very hard. One day, when he was shopping at his usual grocery store he was arrested again for theft. Had Mkurnli not been able to confirm his alibi, he would now be facing four years in prison for something he did not do.

Pandemic leads to arrest of innocent man

Posted on 16th November 202016th November 2020 By Sarah.SGF

It all started when Demetre’s pregnant wife got toothache one evening during the Covid curfew (from 9pm to 6am at the time). They rang the doctor and discovered that she needed a painkiller that they didn’t have at home. Demetre popped out to the pharmacy.

On his way home, Demetre saw police. He hid between two parked cars. The owner was on a nearby balcony, thought Demetre was trying to rob his car and started shouting. Demetre panicked and ran away. The police caught him and tried to arrest him.

Justice for one Tbilisi family

Posted on 20th April 202020th April 2020 By Sarah.SGF

In normal times, one of our major programmes provides justice for homeless and vulnerable young people in Tbilisi, Georgia. During the Corona virus crisis, our lawyer is working from home and the court system is seriously disrupted. Here is a reminder of one of our successful cases.

When we got involved, Vladimir had been arrested and charged with Deliberate Bodily Harm and was facing up to eight years in prison. The case file showed that Vaska had been visiting Vladimir, they quarrelled and Vladimir inflicted severe bodily harm on him.

In fact, the situation was different Continue reading Justice for one Tbilisi family