Odesa Court Awards ₴400K to Transgender Woman for Illegal Prosecution

The Malynovskyi District Court of Odesa ordered the state to pay 400 thousand hryvnias in compensation to Maria Vinichenko, a transgender woman, for non-pecuniary damage caused by years of illegal criminal prosecution.

This was reported by the NGO Prozhektor.

The case began in 2019, when Vinichenko was accused of producing and distributing pornography under Article 301 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. The accusation was based on dubious evidence, but the investigation persisted in pushing the case forward, and the prosecutor's office approved the indictment.

Due to transphobic attitudes in society and law enforcement, Maria faced significant discrimination, including lawyers' refusals to provide her with legal defense. It was only in 2020 that lawyer Vitalii Matveiev took on the case as part of the Human Rights Clinic project. After several years of court hearings, in May 2023, the case was closed due to the prosecutor's refusal to prosecute.

Maria Vinichenko, who used to be actively involved in public activities and helped other transgender people with the legal aspects of gender reassignment, suggests that it was her openness that led to the fabricated case.

Thelegal proceedings led to a deterioration in her psycho-emotional state, loss of her job, and conflicts with her neighbors. Despite all the difficulties, she decided to seek justice in court and demanded compensation in the amount of UAH 1 million. Intent has previously written about this.

The court partially satisfied her claim, awarding 400 thousand hryvnias for non-pecuniary damage.

"This case has become a symbol of the struggle for justice and raised an important issue of law enforcement's responsibility to citizens. At the same time, it has exposed deeper social problems - discrimination against transgender people in Ukraine," the publication noted.

Ірина Глухова