Sergei Tkach, one of Ukraine’s most notorious serial killers, is dead. He will not be missed, however, the news of his death did not just open wounds for the families of his victims. Tkach murdered his victims over 25 years, escaping capture in large part because at least ten other men had been tortured into ‘confessing’ to individual crimes and sentenced to long terms of imprisonment. Even Tkach’s arrest did not bring a swift end to the torment for those victims of police torture, and no real lessons appear to have been learned. Other prisoners, many serving life sentences, remain behind bars despite equally strong grounds for suspecting grave miscarriages of justice. Now Ukraine’s legislators are allowing a bill to languish that could ensure that innocent men go free.
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A prison guard shows a cell on the roof, where the detainees of the Lukyanivsky detention center may enjoy the fresh air, on Aug. 1.
