In 2006, 14-year-old Giorgi Zerekidze was convicted on charges of attempted murder for profit, armed robbery, and hooliganism. Judge Giorgi Goginashvili sentenced him to 10 years in prison. According to the case materials, on January 6, 2006, following an argument, Zerekidze lightly stabbed 23-year-old distributor Levan Bochorishvili in the shoulder. The initial investigation claimed Zerekidze was attempting to extort money from him. Although the victim later changed his testimony four times, the investigation and the court relied solely on his first statement.

Both the defense and civil society organizations argued that the investigation had been mishandled and the charges misclassified. UNICEF also expressed concern over the harsh sentence imposed on a minor. A year later, on March 19, 2007, the Court of Appeals reduced Zerekidze’s sentence from ten to seven years.

The case sparked nationwide protests. The appellate court’s decision led to an uproar — after a confrontation with court marshals, Institute for Equality representative Jaba Jishkariani was arrested. In response, poet Zurab Rtveliashvili went on a hunger strike for over a week inside the Writers’ House, demanding his release. On March 21, high school students in Tbilisi joined demonstrations calling for a fair trial. Protests spread to eight other cities across Georgia and were organized by the opposition party New Rights. The demonstrations continued the following day.

In response, Giga Bokeria, a leader of the ruling United National Movement, declared that the government would take a strict stance against offenders, stating that “any young person who poses a threat to society will be isolated.”

The protests produced no result. Giorgi Zerekidze was released from prison in 2010 after passing his university entrance exams. A few months later, he was arrested again on charges of hooliganism and sentenced to eight years. He was finally released in 2013 after the change of government, having been granted political prisoner status. The judge who had originally sentenced him, Giorgi Goginashvili, was appointed as a lifetime judge in 2018, to serve until reaching retirement age.