Crime
Andalusian High Court upholds defendant's six-year prison sentence for sexually assaulting his 14-year-old cousin
Victim required specialised therapeutic treatment for symptoms of anxiety, depression and self-harm
The High Court of Justice of AndalucÃa (TSJA) has upheld the six-year prison sentence the provincial court of Jaén imposed on a man found ... guilty of sexually assaulting his second cousin, who was under the age of 14 at the time.
The events took place in the early hours of 5-6 July 2021 on a piece of wasteland in the municipality of Puente de Génave (Jaén). The defendant was there with his cousin, who he subjected to various sexual acts.
Following the incident, the girl met a mutual friend whom she told what had happened.
The girl required specialised therapeutic treatment for symptoms of anxiety, depression and self-harm after the incident.
In their appeal, the defence team alleged a breach of procedural rights due to the involvement in the trial of a social worker who had not initially been included in the list of expert witnesses.
The TSJA dismissed this ground, noting that the defence had not raised any objection or reservation at the time of the oral hearing. Furthermore, the court pointed out that the endorsement of the psychological report by a single practitioner is fully valid and sufficient.
The TSJA also rejected the claim that the presumption of innocence had been breached, considering the girl's testimony to be "convincing and truthful". The testimony of the friend, the A&E medical report and the reports from the institute of forensic medicine corroborated her account.
The court ruled out the exclusion of liability on the grounds of a close age difference, given that there was no consent on the part of the victim at any time.
The private prosecution requested that the restraining order extend from the stipulated 200 metres to a radius of 500 metres and that the aggravating circumstance of abuse of trust be applied, on the grounds that the defendant had looked after the minor since she was a child.
The TSJA dismissed these claims, stating that the restraining order is sufficient to prevent any contact and that there is no proven or described factual basis in the indictment to justify the aggravating circumstance of superiority.
Finally, the court upheld the compensation of 25,000 euros for non-pecuniary damages, rejecting both the defence's request to reduce this amount and the private prosecutor's request to increase it to 40,000 euros.
The ruling is not yet final and an appeal may be lodged with the Supreme Court.
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