Senator Zelezny

Justice Minister Pavel Rychetský said on Sat. that Vladimír Železný gained immunity from prosecution by winning a Senate seat over the weekend. Železný has become the first person already charged with a crime to win a seat in one of the houses of Parliament, which has raised technical questions about who is subject to immunity. Lawyer Tomáš Sokol made a big point prior to the elections of arguing that Železný isn't guaranteed immunity. But Sokol represented Železný's son in his rape trial and could have been helping Železný in his effort to convince voters that he wasn't running merely as a way to stay out of jail. Železný is a long-term thinker and had been preparing for years to run for the Senate. A former TV Nova reporter told us senators would never vote to lift his immunity: He has stored up too much dirt on them over the years.