Iran’s judiciary operates as a branch of the regime’s repressive power. But its sentencing can look pretty arbitrary and negotiable. In 2006 a woman convicted of adultery was sentenced to death by stoning. After international outcry the sentence was suspended, although the charges remain. It’s not the first time the judiciary has sent contradictory messages.

Kaveh Eshani is a professor of international studies at DePaul University and a contributing editor of the Middle East Report. He’s originally from Iran. He shares his understanding of how the judiciary system works.