The Ribnikar Case

A student opened fire at Belgrade's Vladislav Ribnikar school. Nine pupils and a security guard were killed, others were wounded, and in the first days the media focused on the planning of the attack, the father's weapons, and the fact that the shooter was too young for adult criminal liability.

After the tragedy, Serbia declared mourning, debated gun control and school safety measures, and then saw the start of the Serbia Against Violence protests, which directed demands at the state, regulators, and media.

The case split into several branches: criminal charges against the parents and related figures, civil suits by families, and questions of responsibility for the school and the state. That means each new article has to be read in the context of which branch of the process it actually concerns.

N1 recorded the prosecution's position on the sentences for Vladimir Kecmanovic and the mother, Danas updated the story through the words of a murdered girl's mother, and Kurir and Novosti put details of the final phase into their headlines. The case thus moved into waiting for the verdict.

Kurir separately reported that the verdict in the Ribnikar case is scheduled for June 18. That date becomes the next point that families, the court, and the media will watch.

The Higher Court in Belgrade sentenced Vladimir Kecmanovic to 14 years and 6 months and Miljana Kecmanovic to 2 years and 11 months in the repeated trial; the first-instance verdict can be appealed.