The constitutional Court has ruled this week on a case of possible police abuse in a frisk and has done so to agree with the victim of the situation. The ruling opens the door so that, in similar situations, the facts must be investigated to avoid false closures. The woman from Extremadura who has ended up obtaining the protection of the Constitutional Court puts an end to three years of struggle to ensure that what happened is thoroughly investigated. Her lawyer, Carlos Vaquero, celebrates the victory and assures that it is a “absolute act of Justice”.
The criminal lawyer and associate professor of Procedural Law at the Carlos III University explains in an interview to Vozpópuli that the evaluation of the fault couldn’t be more positive taking into account the level of demand of the court of guarantees when admitting appeals for processing. Especially if, as has happened in this case, it came from the refusal of two courts of first and second instance to investigate the facts that date back to the beginning of 2019. “This forces thoroughly investigate some facts that in our opinion are absolutely reprehensible and unfair”, says the lawyer.
This lawyer – who also litigates in other procedures such as the Villarejo case, where he defends the commissioner’s wife – maintains that “the tenacity and the correct construction of the resource” have allowed the matter to be turned 180 degrees. But nevertheless, The road has not been easy. During this time, she has come across the file of an investigating court that began investigating the facts and also of the Provincial Court of Badajoz, which considered that it was not necessary to carry out all the tests requested to clarify whether the police search to which she was subjected there was or was not abuse.
Full nude search
“We are fully aware of the difficulty involved in investigating and, above all, proving conduct such as the one that occurred here, which generally takes place in a reserved area and with no . It’s practically the word of the complainant against a police officer“, explains the lawyer. However, the Constitutional Court, with the favorable opinion of the prosecutor, understands that it must be investigated if their rights were violated during this search that took place in police facilities. The victim was detained by agents of the National Police while leaving the Badajoz courts, where he had an open case for refusing to deliver his daughters to the father of the minors.
In the face of an outrage like the one reported, we had to do everything possible so that the abuse did not go unpunished.
The complaint maintains that, already at the police station, she was subjected to a strip search with full nudity that an agent practiced while listening to the laughter of other police officers who witnessed the scene. She assures that she spent practically the whole day without eating or drinking water and that, after requesting paracetamol, she was transferred in handcuffs to the emergency room of the medical center where she works as an anesthesiologist. In her brief, she stated that the agents maintained a cocky attitude with her at all times. He said the deal was “unjust, vexatious and intolerant” and that there were no compelling reasons to undress her since she had come from a court where she had previously passed through the security arch.
“These complaints should be investigated”
“Faced with an outrage like the one reported, we had to do everything possible so that the abuse will not go unpunished“, explains his lawyer. However, the court that admitted the complaint ended up filing it after listening to him in court and obtaining the police report prepared on the occasion of his arrest. This letter denied many of the accusations of the complainant, which contributed a recording to the cause that she herself carried out from the arrest to the search.
The court considered that the audio did not shed light on the alleged abuse suffered, but his lawyer specifies that these surreptitious recordings are perfectly valid, especially when the defendants deny what happened. After the refusal of the court, the lawyer appealed to the Badajoz Court that he dismissed the appeal on the understanding that police abuse was not proven. Cowboy decided to wear the crusade to the end and filed an amparo appeal before the Constitutional Court, which now agrees with him and orders that the whole matter be thoroughly investigated.
“This resource is important for my client. The consequences it has for her they become extensive for those people who face similar facts; that they can take note that their complaint deserves to be investigated. In a rule of law are not tolerable or bearable such behavior, whoever the person who suffers from it is,” says Vaquero, who clarifies that this ruling may have an impact on other people who have suffered situations similar to his defendant since what is clear is that a principle of evidence should be enough to start an investigation.
The mistreatment suffered by Sara goes beyond the facts denounced. Justice turned her back
The ruling – for which the former State Attorney General Cándido Conde-Pumpido was the rapporteur – appeals to the doctrine of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) to maintain that, even if there is no ill-treatment, it must be practiced a minimum of investigative steps before giving it up. In this specific case, the judge filed the case without even hearing the agent who conducted the search in court. Adhering an expert opinion on the audio recordings provided by the complainant who intended to demonstrate the validity of the evidence was also ruled out.
“The sentence considers the agreed provisional dismissal premature. The suspicions of mistreatment exist, they are reasonable and the investigation carried out by the court has been insufficient. All possibilities have not been exhausted. to find out what happened. The mistreatment suffered by Sara goes beyond the facts denounced. Justice turned its back on him. The step taken neutralizes an injustice. Her condition will be investigated and I trust that it will also be repaired, “her lawyer now sentences.