Cassation Court upholds 20-year sentence for man who murdered his father-in-law

AMMAN — The Cassation Court has upheld a Criminal Court ruling sentencing a man to a 20-year prison term for murdering his father-in-law in Irbid in August 2013.

The Criminal Court declared the defendant guilty of stabbing his father-in-law to death following an argument on August 31.

Court papers said the defendant had a fight with his wife a few days before the incident, and she returned to her family's home.

On the day of the incident, the court maintained, the defendant headed to his in-laws' house to bring his wife back home.

"An argument ensued and the defendant and his father-in-law came to blows. The defendant then pulled out a knife and stabbed the victim once in the chest," the court verdict said.

The victim was rushed to a nearby hospital but was declared dead on arrival, according to the court.

The defendant's attorney contested the verdict claiming that the "Criminal Court refused to refer his client to a hospital for mental evaluation and disregarded a witness who was present during the incident, and testified that he was not sure who stabbed the victim, the court documents said. 

However, the Cassation Court ruled that the Criminal Court followed the proper procedures and the punishment was appropriate.

The Cassation Court tribunal comprised judges Mahmoud Ababneh, Basel Abu Anzeh, Yassin Abdullat, Mohammad Tarawneh and Bassem Mubeidin.