On 24 June 1995, the Lebanese Tribunal found Samir Geagea guilty of the murder of Dany Chamoun and his family. He was sentenced to death commuted to life in prison with hard labour. Co-defendants Camille Karam and Rafic Saadeh were sentenced to ten and one year respectively. Ten other members of the Lebanese Forces were sentenced to life in absentia. The case was based entirely on circumstantial evidence and the trial was described by Amnesty International as seriously flawed. Geagea remained on trial for the Saydet al-Najat Church bombing.Middle East International No 504, 7 July 1995; Publishers Lord Mayhew, Dennis Walters MP; Giles Trendle p.13 The verdict was rejected by a part of the Lebanese public opinion and by Dany's brother, Dory Chamoun, who declared that the Syrian occupation army was responsible for the massacre. Geagea was released as a part of a joint goodwill national reconciliation policy, after the Syrian departure.Fisk, Robert. "Warlord gets life, but plan his vacation", Independent,, 25 June 1995.Kennan, Rodeina. "Lebanon Militia Leader's Sentence For Murders Fans Religious Tension ", , 25 June 1995.
