Today a dramatic new twist in the Khodorkovsky trial emerged.  Natalya Vasilyeva, a disillusioned court aide to judge Viktor Danilkin, who recently handed down a 14-year sentence to the Yukos founder and business and partner Platon Lebedev, has reportedly told the press that Danilkin was coerced into handing down a strictest sentence by higher-ranking officials during a trial which was consistently surveiled by the upper echelons of the judiciary.  The suggestion that the trial was rigged may not be a revelation, but what is astounding is the bravery of the admission, given that those who shine a light upon the darker corners of Russia’s judicial system, as the Power Vertical points out, dramatically increase their risk of becoming trapped within it.  From Brian Coulson:

“I can say that the whole judicial community understands very well that this is a made to order case and a made to order trial,” Vasilyeva said, adding that top officials were concerned that Danilkin would not impose a sufficiently harsh sentence on Khodorkovsky.