The defense lawyer of the Late Amos Awan has questioned the reinstatement of Episcopal Church Bishop David Akau Kuol, citing a stay of execution.
A stay of execution is a court order to temporarily suspend the execution of a court judgment or other court order.
“The stay of execution was issued by the high court, and this shows that the stay of execution stops everything,” Advocate Philip Manyok Kuol told Mingkaman FM.
“This includes the reinstatement of the bishop or anyone to claim that the court is over.”
On October 3, the Juba County Court Judge David Moses Tut dismissed the cohabitation case against the bishop.
Nearly two weeks later, the court issued a stay of execution and ordered Bishop Akau to appear before the court again on Friday next week.
However, the Awerial Diocese went ahead and reinstated the bishop.
“The bishop is not free. If there are some of the activities that the bishop engages on now, they are being done illegally,” Manyok added.
Reacting to the claim, Bishop Akau’s defense lawyer Joseph Diardit Magok denied receiving a copy of the summon.
“Let them not provoke the situation. The bishop was reinstated and he is doing his activities, and it does not concern anyone,” Diardit claimed. “And if there is a continuation of the court, why don’t they serve us with the copy?”
On May 31, late Amos Awan Ghak opened the court case No. 272 at Juba County Court, accusing Bishop David Akau of illegally living with his daughter Amer as a wife for nearly 12 years.