A court reduced the prison sentence of a man convicted of raping a woman from four to six years, after that his lawyer demanded the reduction when the new law established a crime of sexual assault to a minimum degree, in one of the cases known after its recent entry into force.
The reduction of sentences for aggressors sexualby the application of a new law has generated a strong controversy in Spain, where one part of the coalition government proposes to amend the norm while another accuses the judges of applying it badly.
The law of integral guarantee of the sexual freedom, known in the country as the law of “only yes is yes”, led to a revision to lower sentences for some convicted of sexual crimes.
This, since Spanish legislation establishes that the most favorable sentence for the convicted person must be applied retroactively.
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A court, when reviewing one of the sentences, determined that “consent given by persons over the age of 16 does not constitute a crime”.
The foregoing, except if there is violence, intimidation or abuse of a position of superiority or vulnerability of the victim.
The president of the Spanish Government, the socialist Pedro Sánchez, expressed this Wednesday his confidence in Justice and its “sensitivity”. This, in the face of sexual crimes, waiting for the courts “unify doctrine”.
“Afterwards we will have to see what steps to take”, he said in statements at the summit of the G20 in Indonesia.
These were words after which several ministers from the socialist part of their government advocated studying possible modifications to the law and defended the actions of judges.
Controversy in Spain facing weaker penalties against sexual offenders
In contrast, the Minister of Equality, Irene Montero, reiterated her criticism of the magistrates.
“There are judges who are breaking the law”, the minister told journalists in Madrid.
This, considering that a macho mentality leads them to misinterpret it, but I trust that they “unify the criteria” so that < strong>“the aggressors do not go unpunished”.
The minister rejected the need to review a “feminist law”,< /strong> while the main opposition group in the Spanish Parliament, the conservative Popular Party, formally requested that the Executive be mandated to review it “by emergency means”.
From the judiciary, whose government body has already warned that the law would generate a reduction in sentences, it is warned that many other defense attorneys for sexual offenders will request review sentences and even judges can act ex officio.