Nisim Pines, accused of raping a 12 year old girl with Down's syndrome, refused Thursday to appear before the Jerusalem District Court to discuss his case, despite the fact a psychiatric evaluation deemed Pines fit for trial.
The state representative for the hearing said that she was not opposed to Pines' refusal to appear because Pines's defense attorney was forced to quit the case due to a conflict of interests. Pines is currently in the Herzog Psychiatric Hospital in Jerusalem.
