05.09.2026 07:40
The first hearing of the case opened regarding the armed attack carried out by student İsa Aras Mersinli at Ayser Çalık Middle School in Kahramanmaraş, which resulted in the deaths of teacher Ayla Kara and 9 students, has concluded at the Kahramanmaraş 3rd Heavy Penal Court. The court decided to release the detained mother, Peyman Pınar Mersinli, while ordering the continued detention of the father, Uğur Mersinli, and adjourned the next hearing to December 4, 2026.
The first hearing of the trial regarding the school attack, in which teacher Ayla Kara and 9 students lost their lives, carried out by İsa Aras Mersinli in Kahramanmaraş, was held at the Kahramanmaraş 3rd Heavy Penal Court.
THE FIRST HEARING LASTED FOR HOURS
The hearing, which started in the early morning hours of September 4 and lasted until the night hours of September 5, was attended by the relatives of those who lost their lives, the injured and their families, and their lawyers, the Spokesperson of the Turkish Grand National Assembly (TBMM) Commission to Investigate School Attacks and AK Party Istanbul Deputy İsa Mesih Şahin, Commission Member AK Party Kahramanmaraş Deputy İrfan Karatutlu, and the Director General of Legal Services of the Ministry of National Education, Emir Hasan Arslantaş.
FATHER AND MOTHER ATTENDED THE HEARING VIA SEGBIS
Father Uğur Mersinli, who faces 10 aggravated life sentences for "attempted murder with eventual intent" and up to 30 years in prison for "attempted injury with eventual intent," and mother Peyman Pınar Mersinli, who faces up to 22.5 years in prison for "causing the death and injury of more than one person through conscious negligence," attended the hearing from the prison where they are held via the Audio and Visual Information System (SEGBIS).
MOTHER RELEASED
The court panel, announcing its decision after the day-long defenses, decided to release mother Peyman Pınar Mersinli and to continue the detention of father Uğur Mersinli, adjourning the next hearing to December 4, 2026.
FAMILIES REACTED
The decision announced by the head of the court was met with reaction by the families who lost their children, and they went out into the courthouse corridors chanting "Rights, law, justice." The families said that such a decision after 16 hours saddened them.
"WE WILL OBJECT TO THIS DECISION"
Lawyer Özcan Kara, making a statement on behalf of the families, said they would object to the release decision and request the recusal of the judges, stating:
"Unfortunately, the Kahramanmaraş 3rd Heavy Penal Court has violated its impartiality and the right to a fair trial here and has decided by a majority of votes to release Peyman Pınar Mersinli, the mother of the murderer. This decision will be immediately objected to upon our request by the Kahramanmaraş Chief Public Prosecutor's Office. We will request the recusal of the member judges, except for the dissenting member judge. We believe they have lost their impartiality. The release of someone who has caused such a chain of negligence at this stage is a legal scandal. A month ago, the same court president gave the opinion that detention should continue in the preliminary hearing minutes; what has changed a month later? On the contrary, the chain of negligence has emerged even more in this trial, and the mother's negligence has also emerged. This release decision within this chain of negligence is a legal scandal. Tomorrow, we will apply to the Kahramanmaraş Chief Public Prosecutor's Office and object to this decision, and we will request the arrest of Peyman Pınar Mersinli from the 4th Heavy Penal Court."
FATHER'S DEFENSE
Uğur Mersinli, who made his defense at the hearing, used the following statements:
Stating that his son found the guns, Mersinli defended himself by saying, "The child's access to the guns in this incident does not show parental fault. He took them without my knowledge. My intent cannot be inferred from Aras's behavior."
Claiming he did not know his son would carry out a school attack, Mersinli said, "It is wrong to place all the risk of the incident on me. The guns were stolen. Bedrooms are places in homes where doors are locked."
Stating that after the guns could not be found during the search of his home, he was the one who told them, Mersinli said, "The items in the wardrobe in the bedroom belong to me," and reacted to public officials who predicted İsa Aras Mersinli would carry out a school attack but did not share this information with them.
Mersinli continued as follows:
"İsa Aras Mersinli prepared his manifesto beforehand, and I took him to the shooting range because of my love for it; I feel I was deceived."
"THE PERPETRATOR IS İSA ARAS MERSİNLİ"
Defendant Mersinli said that if there is a crime committed, there is also a perpetrator, stating, "The perpetrator is İsa Aras Mersinli, and no public case has been filed against him. The prosecution has prepared a mixed indictment under public pressure to blame the mother and father."
Uğur Mersinli announced that he is a plaintiff and complainant against his son for the crime of theft.
Stating that he is a police officer and carries a weapon, Mersinli also said he is a shooting instructor. Defending himself by saying, "I have not violated any law in the current legislation regarding carrying weapons," father Mersinli said, "I kept the guns and ammunition out of sight, in separate places. The door of our bedroom was locked."
"WE DID NOT SEE THAT HE HAD A TENDENCY FOR VIOLENCE"
Father Mersinli, stating there was no expert opinion indicating his son had psychological problems, asked the court panel, "Is there any record showing he bullied his friends during and before the incident? No such determination has been made, and there is no expert opinion. What behavior should families and teachers consider an alarm? How should the distinction between a temporary threat and a real threat be made?"
Claiming, "We followed our child. If he could play games one day, he couldn't the next. As a family, we never saw that Aras had a tendency for violence," the father continued as follows:
"Our child had adjustment problems at school; he didn't like school, but we consulted a psychologist for him. We went to the psychologist, and he didn't tell us anything. I was raising an adolescent boy for the first time. He had met with the guidance teacher 32 times, but nothing was notified to me. The child was causing trouble at school, but when he came home, there was no problem at home."
Uğur Mersinli explained that his son shot for the first time at the shooting range and that it was impossible to miss shots from close range, saying, "He was never allowed to shoot anywhere. He shot for the first time at the shooting range. There is no chance he shot without my knowledge. He had no prior experience either. There is no proof or evidence of this either."
Telling the court panel that his son said to him, "Dad, my friends have shot, let me shoot too," Mersinli said, "If I had known about the school attack plan, I would not have let him shoot anyway. Shooting at a shooting range is not a difficult thing."
The father also stated that the attacker, Mersinli, did not understand the games on his computer because he did not know English, and that he saw them as normal games.
MOTHER TOOK HIM TO A BEAUTY CENTER FOR BLACKHEADS
After the completion of Uğur Mersinli's defense, this time his mother, Pınar Peyman Mersinli, took the stand.
Beginning her statement with, "Maybe because you see me as the mother of a murderer, I don't know what to say. I would never have wanted such a sad event to happen," Mersinli stated that she was an educator and had a fear of guns.
Adding that she knew where the guns were but did not know the exact number, Mersinli continued her defense as follows:
"I always said guns were dangerous. I have three more children. My children were academically successful. How could I suspect something like this? My son had only gone to school to give a notebook. I have raised teenagers before and I saw differences, but I did not feel he would do something like this. I am in shock over the incident. "
Mersinli stated that psychologists said her son needed psychiatric treatment but that it was not an emergency situation, and said, "We trusted the experts. "
Also speaking about taking her son to the beauty center, Mersinli said, "My son had many blackheads on his face. He had many blackheads on his back. He was bothered by this, I tried to clean them at home, but his face became wounded. Therefore, I took my son to the beauty center to clean his face. "
FROM THE INDICTMENT
In the 43-page indictment prepared by the Kahramanmaraş Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, it is requested that the detained defendant Uğur Mersinli be punished for "intentional homicide with possible intent" against 10 people, "intentional wounding with possible intent" of various natures against 15 people, and "violation of Law No. 6136 on Firearms, Knives and Other Tools", and that the detained defendant Peyman Pınar Mersinli be punished for "causing the death and injury of more than one person by conscious negligence".
In the armed attack carried out by student İsa Aras Mersinli at Ayser Çalık Middle School in Kahramanmaraş on April 15, teacher Ayla Kara and 9 students lost their lives, and 15 students were injured.