Evaluating the conclusions of the lower courts regarding the actions of the defendants and the qualification of the criminal act, the Supreme Court recognized them as justified. As stated in court, Justine, due to her age, was in a helpless state, and both defendants were aware of this. The court recognized the joint actions of the defendants as conscious participation in the process of taking a life, establishing indirect intent regarding the onset of death and the causal link between the jointly committed actions and the death of the victim. Cassation appeals were filed by the defendants' lawyers. Earlier, the first-instance court sentenced the girl's father, Vladimir Reinikov, to 20 years in prison, and her stepmother, Sandra Reinikova, to 17 years. An appeal was filed against the sentence, in which the prosecutor demanded harsher penalties, and the appellate court increased the terms. The court found that both defendants had treated the minor Justine cruelly and violently, and they were also found guilty of the murder of the girl, committed by a group of individuals, knowing that the minor child was in a helpless state and that as a result of their violent actions, the girl's death could occur. In an effort to conceal the traces of the committed crime, the girl's body was hidden, and the police were misled regarding her disappearance. According to the indictment, Justine's father and stepmother, at their home in the Rezekne region, while intoxicated, began to conflict over domestic grievances against little Justine, as they could not cope with raising the girl. The defendants yelled at the girl and intentionally struck her on the body and head, causing serious bodily injuries, as a result of which Justine died. The girl's body was hidden in the basement of an abandoned house, and the State Police and society were misled regarding the alleged disappearance of Justine. Reports of the girl's disappearance in Rogovka, Nautriena parish of the Rezekne region, were made on May 5, 2023. Various search activities were conducted for a month and a half, involving significant forces. From the very first days of the girl's disappearance, law enforcement agencies were working with several versions, including that a crime may have been committed against Justine.
