Stanislav Markelov is one of Russia’s most talented and brave human rights lawyers, and we’ve been pleased to share some of his material in translation on this blog in the past. (Download his bio here). Over the years he has been involved in some of the most contentious and dangerous cases against Russian Army and security forces individuals for crimes committed in Chechnya, including the now famous “Case of the Cadet” – representing the family of the victim Zelimkhan Murdalov against officer Sergei Lapin in the torture trials. Below we have a new translation of one of Markelov’s closing arguments to the judge during the retrial of Lapin (date unknown), which is an impressively stunning illustration of what its like to defend victims of state abuses in high stakes political trials in today’s Russia. But first, a little background.