A court in Makhachkala partially upheld Magomedov's claim against the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

A judge in Makhachkala assessed moral damages to Magomed Magomedov, the editor-in-chief of Chernovik, at three thousand rubles for his illegal detention during a picket.

As reported by the "Caucasian Knot," on January 15, 2024, police detained Magomed Magomedov, deputy editor-in-chief of Chernovik, and took him to the police station, accusing him of violating the rules for holding a solo picket. Magomed Magomedov attempted to hold a solo picket in Makhachkala in support of Abdulmumin Gadzhiev, but another picketer joined him, and security forces declared a violation of the rules for solo protests. A lawyer was not allowed into the police station to see the journalist. The court found no evidence of wrongdoing in Magomedov's actions, and the journalist was released the same day. In July 2025, Magomedov filed a lawsuit against the Ministry of Internal Affairs, demanding compensation for his unlawful detention.

The Soviet District Court of Makhachkala assessed moral damages inflicted on the editor-in-chief of "Chernovik" at three thousand rubles due to his illegal detention at a picket in January 2024, the Memorial Human Rights Center* reported today.

The journalist's administrative charges following his arrest at this picket have been deemed unlawful. Judge Mikhrab Adziev partially upheld Magomedov's civil claim against the Ministry of Internal Affairs in late February. The compensation amount was reduced by a factor of 50; the editor-in-chief of Chernovik had demanded 150,000 rubles from the agency.

The Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Ministry of Internal Affairs for Dagestan, the Sovietsky District Police Department of Makhachkala, and the Russian Ministry of Finance participated in the lawsuit as defendants and third parties. "During the consideration of the case, Judge Adziev held 10 court hearings," according to a publication on the human rights organization's website.

According to the court's decision, the amount of compensation for moral damages was determined "taking into account the nature of Magomedov's violated rights, the requirements of reasonableness and fairness, as well as the specific circumstances." A Memorial* lawyer stated that "courts award very insignificant amounts of compensation for moral damages" for the illegal arrests of journalists, recalling previous decisions in the cases of Yulia Vishnevetskaya and Vladimir Sevrinovsky*.

According to the lawyer, existing judicial practice in cases of illegal detention of journalists does not take into account all relevant circumstances. "The violation of their rights was associated not only with the restriction and deprivation of liberty, but also resulted in the inability to engage in further professional activities during this period. Information about the detention and administrative charges was disseminated by the media, which damaged the journalists' business reputation," the commentary notes.

As "Caucasian Knot" reported, journalists Yulia Vishnevetskaya and Vladimir Sevrinovsky* were detained on September 26, 2022, at the site of a protest against mobilization in Makhachkala. In September 2025, the Sovietsky District Court of Makhachkala partially upheld their claims: Vishnevetskaya was awarded 10,000 rubles in compensation instead of 330, and Sevrinovsky* was awarded one thousand instead of 200.

* are included in the Russian register of foreign agents.

** The activities of Meta (owner of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp) are banned in Russia.