MADINA: The detention of a woman accused of physical assaulting her Indonesian housemaid in Madina is illegal and is in violation of punishment procedures, a lawyer said. Ahmad Al-Rashid has called on the Bureau of Investigation and Prosecution to release the woman on bail. The court should also push for her release on bail until the trial is finished, he said, and the woman should be given the right to have a lawyer to represent her. The case is classified as misdemeanor, which is less serious than a felony requiring mandatory detention, and she could be released on bail, as per the law, he added. “There were similar and even more serious offenses than this one and perpetrators were released on bail without compromising the plaintiff's right to fair trial,” Al-Rashid said. The case file has been referred to the partial court to look into it as “a misdemeanor case rather than a felony as more serious crimes go to the general court,” he said. A court source said that no judge has been assigned to look into the case. The woman is still in solitary confinement in Madina Prison for allegedly abusing her 23-year-old Indonesian housemaid, Sumiati Mustapa, officials said. The maid has been in the hospital since early November. She was unconscious when she was admitted and had signs of malnutrition and blood loss in addition to horrifying injuries.
