An appeals court has slashed expert fees of almost €20,000 imposed in March on a man who was found guilty of a fatal stabbing in Birkirkara in a case of excessive self-defence.
Etienne Bartolo had been convicted of fatally stabbing Roderick Grech in Birkirkara four years ago. He was declared to have acted in excess of legitimate self-defence when he stabbed the victim with his penknife after being punched by the other man. Bartolo was handed a five-year jail term, a fine of €116.47 and was ordered to foot the bill of €19,885.16 in court expert expenses.
Etienne Bartolo.
The bill for court expenses was reduced to almost one-third after lawyers argued on appeal that it did not reflect the fact that the accused had been found guilty of excusable homicide.