Case of three-year-old Viktorie's death: father now charged not with murder, but with a drink/drug-related offence

The case surrounding the death of three-year-old Viktorie has taken a dramatic turn: Prague police have reclassified the charge against the girl's father. He was previously suspected of murder, but the case now concerns a different offence linked to his state of intoxication, Prague police spokesman Jan Daněk announced.

"The case was reclassified following the findings of a forensic psychiatric and clinical psychological examination," Daněk explained. "The expert determined that, at the time of the incident, the accused had completely lost the ability to recognise and control his actions due to an acute psychotic disorder." The man remains in custody.

What led up to the tragedy

Viktorie's father had struggled with drug addiction and mental illness for many years. He brutally killed the girl this past March — less than six months after a judge in Benešov had returned her from foster care to her biological parents, placing her under the supervision of the child protection authority (OSPOD).

Complaints against the judge and child protection authorities

Justice Minister Jeroným Tejc (for the ANO movement) has already filed a disciplinary complaint against the judge who ordered the child's return to her parents, and has also launched a review of OSPOD's handling of the case, since the authority raised no objections to the decision at the time. The minister has previously spoken of the need to reassess the related expert opinions as well. He is seeking a 30% salary cut for one year for the judge — the final ruling on her culpability will be made by the disciplinary panel of Prague's High Court. Tejc himself has admitted that proving the case will require demonstrating a clear abuse of authority in her decision-making.

The judge, for her part, insists she acted correctly: according to her, all parties involved in the proceedings were heard and 15 pieces of written evidence were examined, with every party — including the foster parents — waiving their right to appeal. She also points to a psychiatric assessment stating that the father, provided he remained completely abstinent from drugs, was capable of properly caring for the child despite his mental disorder. According to the judge, this conclusion was corroborated by other evidence, particularly reports from the therapeutic and specialised facilities the father attended.

Reform to prevent a repeat

Tejc is now preparing systemic changes to prevent such a tragedy from happening again. He intends to enshrine a new legal definition of child safety and to establish interdepartmental teams whose members would cooperate on custody proceedings and share critical information with one another. In early July, the minister suggested the reform could take effect within a year.

Source: novinky.cz