Spanish Supreme Court open to reducing sexual assault sentences after new rape law

Spain's Supreme Court set jurisprudence on Tuesday regarding the new rape law but warned the new legislation could be used to reduce the sentences of prisoners when they are charged with a more lenient ruling.

This approach will be "studied case by case, and not as a whole," a statement shared by the tribunal reads.

This is the first time the tribunal has ruled on the new rape law, commonly known as the "only yes means yes" law, which came into force in October this year.

The Court, despite its warning, ended up increasing the sentences for sexual assault to players of the Arandina football team to nine years in prison for abusing a 15-year-old girl.

Although the sentences have been increased to nine years behind bars, the court already announced that if this law was not in force, the former players of the team would have been sentenced to 10 years in prison.

This new jurisprudence will apply to all sexual assault cases awaiting trial, all appeals processes, and also on final rulings.

Regarding the Arandina case, the Supreme court approved a request from the public prosecutors' office and the plaintiffs not to reduce the sentences of two former players after being charged with up to four years in prison for sexually abusing a minor in 2017.

First instance in Catalonia of lower sentence 

The first instance in Catalonia of a lower sentence being handed down because of the new law also occurred on Tuesday. 

Sentencing a man accused of raping a woman in Blanes on January 24, 2018, a court in Girona said it was obliged to act in accordance with the current legislation because it is "clearly more beneficial to the defendant." 

It sentenced the accused to two and a half years in prison for rape, with mitigating factors of "repairing damages" and "undue delays." 

The court explained that the current legislation outlines a punishment (with mitigating factors) of two to four years in prison, while, under the previous law, the accused was facing a sentence of three to six years. 

The defendant was sentenced to two and a half years in prison and a fine of €300 for rape and injury.  He has been given a restraining order banning him from coming within 500 meters of the victim or communicating with the victim for five years. He has also been instructed to pay the victim €10,245. 

The public and private prosecution had asked for a 12-year prison sentence for the defendant. 

The trial was initially supposed to take place on September 12, but the Girona court suspended it at the request of the defense who argued that the new legislation would come into force on October 7 and could mean a lower sentence for the accused. 

At the time, the prosecution and parties involved were exploring the possibility of reaching a settlement but there was no agreement in the end. 

The sentence is not final; an appeal can be lodged with the Catalan High Court. 

Spanish government to "study" Supreme Court ruling 

The Spanish government "respects" the Supreme Court ruling on the Arandina case, Spain's justice minister, Pilar Llop, said at a press conference following a cabinet meeting on Tuesday. 

Llop stated that the executive will "carefully analyze" the text but that she wanted to "highlight the value" of a law that, in her opinion, represents a "paradigm change" in the fight against sexual violence, because it is based on consent and considers what was previously viewed as abuse as sexual assault. 

Spain's General Attorney against reducing sentences

Spain's attorney general has come out against reducing penalties for sexual offenders when their sentence "is also liable to be imposed in accordance with the new legal framework." 

The head of the Prosecution Ministry said on November 21 that it does not advocate lowering sentences automatically to the new minimums if they are compatible with the current range of sentencing of the new law. 

Only "yes means yes"

Spain's new rape law, known as 'only yes means yes' for the importance it places on consent, came into effect in early October. Doing away with the distinction between sexual abuse and sexual assault and criminalizing street harassment, it appeared to be a promising step forward in the fight for women's rights.

But over a month later, the new law has caused an uproar as it has become apparent that certain convicts – including one of the members of notorious Pamplona 'wolf pack' – are using a loophole to try to have their sentences reduced.

On November 25, over 3,000 people took to the streets in Barcelona to protest against gender-based violence, especially after the loophole in the law and the several sentences reductions seen after it came into force.