Andalucía rejects closure of Malaga juvenile detention centre following complaint

The High Court of Justice of Andalucía (TSJA) has thwarted the efforts of residents of the El Olivar residential development in Malaga's Churriana district to urgently close the juvenile detention centre (CIMI).

The CIMI opened last year in the building that had served for years as a retreat home for the nuns of La Asunción and operated as a refugee centre for a few months in 2024.

The residents filed a legal appeal against the municipal urban planning department and Meridianos (the company that manages the centre for the Andalusian regional government), seeking to annul the permits that had allowed it to open.

As part of that legal action, they requested the court to order the temporary closure of the centre as a precautionary measure. However, the courts did not grant the urgent closure. The residents then appealed that decision.

The TSJA has now upheld the lower court's decision, dismissing the residents' appeal. This dismissal is final. The residents have chosen not to appeal again.

According to the Andalusian High Court, the rejection of the precautionary closure is well-founded because, if carried out, "it would force the relocation of the minors currently housed in the centre, without there being sufficient suitable facilities for this".

"It would, in general, be seriously disruptive to the public interest in the fulfillment of the detention measures that the juvenile justice system has imposed on juvenile offenders, which must clearly prevail over private interests," the court order states.

The centre has triggered outrage and strong opposition from local residents, especially following the incident that occurred in January. It involved two young men, 16 and 18, who the National Police had to arrest after they had broken a window grate and started shouting.

Following that incident, Mayor Francisco de la Torre expressed his support for finding an alternative location for the juvenile detention centre. He announced that his party would vote in favour of a motion, urging the city council and the regional government to begin talks to relocate the CIMI to another site. However, at the last minute, they did not vote in favour.

PP spokesperson Elisa Pérez de Siles instead said that the opening of the building had met all legal requirements. The opposition, however, denied this, indicating that it lacked the required fire safety and rescue report.

In any case, the legal actions of the residents of El Olivar have not yet prevented the juvenile detention centre from operating. The regional government awarded the contract to Meridianos through a public tender and a budget of 20.8 million euros. The centre can operate at this location until 2029.