Nikos Romanos has been acquitted.
Justice is judged not only by its verdicts, but by the time it takes and the cost it imposes before reaching them. When acquittal comes after prolonged pretrial detention, the meaning of “not guilty” is never fully restored; it leaves behind a mark that does not easily fade. At that point, the question is not only whether justice was served, but whether it was delayed to the extent that it resembles injustice.
One might say he was even granted a favor. After 17 months in prison, a simple “not guilty” verdict—and just like that, everything is erased. He should, it seems, be grateful.
The next time he is arrested again as a usual suspect on equally flimsy grounds—something like a partial fingerprint on a plastic bag—he should keep in mind that he is still young. He has years ahead of him. He can afford to spend some of them behind bars for no reason at all. This is Greece, after all—a place where the absurd is never far from reality. Even the justice system, at times, appears unable to distinguish between years of a person’s life and something trivial.