The Position of the State Attorney General’s Office
The State Attorney General’s Office (FGE) has rejected the proposal of the Superior Prosecutor’s Office of Catalonia (FSC) to file an appeal against the amnesty granted to the former Minister of the Interior, Miquel Buch, and to the Mossos sergeant, Lluís Escolà, by the court. of appeals of the TSJC.
Lieutenant prosecutor Pedro Ariche asked the TSJC not to apply the extinction of criminal liability to Buch and Escolà, arguing that the salary received by Escolà as escort of the former president in exile Carles Puigdemont constitutes personal enrichment of a patrimonial nature, which would not be covered by the standard. However, both the TSJC and the Prosecutor’s Office of the Supreme Court did not support this position, the latter being the only one with the power to present an appeal for cassation before the Spanish high court.
Validation of the Positioning by the State Attorney General’s Office
Sources from the State Attorney General’s Office have reported that the position of the prosecutor’s office was established in the Board of Chamber Prosecutors, with the approval of the decree of the attorney general, Álvaro García Ortíz. This position implies amnesty for all crimes related to the process, including the embezzlement of 1-O. Likewise, it is highlighted that the Supreme Court judge Pablo Llarena, in his resolution on Monday, supports the possibility of amnesty for the embezzlement attributed to Buch and Monaguillo.
Justification of Amnesty
The court of the criminal appeals section of the TSJC, chaired by Ángels Vivas, justified the amnesty of Sergeant Escolà by arguing that the collection of the salary cannot be separated from the action carried out by the councilor when hiring him. This resolution set a precedent as it was the first court to grant amnesty.
Appeals Against Supreme Court Resolutions
The Attorney General’s Office is preparing appeals against the two Supreme Court resolutions that reject applying the amnesty to the leaders of the independence process. An appeal is expected to be filed against Judge Llarena’s decision not to apply the amnesty to President Puigdemont and the former ministers Toni Comín and Lluís Puig. In addition, another appeal will be filed against the resolution of the Supreme Court’s criminal chamber, chaired by Manuel Marchena, which also ruled out applying the amnesty to the leaders of ERC and Junts convicted in connection with the 1-O referendum.
Future perspectives
Despite the resources, the application of the amnesty for the leaders of the process will take months to be resolved, and ultimately, the Catalan independentists could seek protection in the Constitutional Court and, if necessary, in the Court of Justice of the Union European Court (CJEU).
