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Original article: No dan el brazo a torcer en caso Gatica: Fiscalía y querellantes buscan anular juicio que absolvió a Claudio Crespo

The legal battle over the Gatica case is far from over. Despite the Fourth Oral Criminal Court in Santiago acquitting former lieutenant colonel Claudio Crespo, the Public Prosecutor’s Office and the three complainants —the National Institute of Human Rights, the Council for Defense of the State, and lawyer Carlos Gajardo— have chosen not to back down and have filed a nullity appeal aimed at overturning the trial and rendering the verdict ineffective. This legal action was formalized last Friday, just before the deadline, and will now be reviewed by the Court of Appeals.

It’s important to recall that on May 13, the capital court announced the acquittal sentencing in favor of the former police officer despite evidence showing that it was his shots that hit current deputy Gustavo Gatica, who subsequently lost his vision due to the impacts.

The decision by the prosecutors stems from a significant disagreement with the acquittal ruling. The Public Prosecutor’s Office argues that the trial court made serious errors in evaluating the evidence presented during the trial. They claim that at least 22 pieces of evidence submitted during the proceedings were not adequately considered, and some were not even mentioned in the final ruling.

«The ruling does not meet the requirement of providing a clear, logical, and comprehensive exposition of the facts that were proven or unproven, whether favorable or not, as mandated by the rules justifying this nullity request,» the document states, as reported by Bio Bío Chile.

The nullity appeal goes beyond mere procedural omissions. The INDH, CDE, and lawyer Gajardo agree that the ruling contains structural flaws that justify its annulment. For the complainants, the acquittal relies on the assertion of an «imminent risk to the defendant’s life,» but without clearly expressing the reasons that led to such a conclusion. Gajardo’s appeal particularly criticizes the court for not adequately justifying «neither the illegitimate aggression, nor the victim’s actions, nor the proportionality of the former police officer’s response.»

Claudio Crespo’s defense, led by attorney Pedro Orthusteguy, has expressed confidence that the appeal will be rejected. «We believe that the ruling does not contain flaws that can be annulled through this appeal,» asserted the defender, who also expressed hope that the Court of Appeals or the Supreme Court will confirm the acquittal to avoid a retrial that has already lasted over a year.

Law «Naín Retamal» and the Acquittal of Claudio Crespo

The background of the case is marked by an established fact and a key regulation. The judges of the Fourth Oral Court determined that, of the three officials who fired anti-riot shotguns on November 8, 2019, at the intersection of Carabineros de Chile and Vicuña Mackenna, Claudio Crespo was the only one who fired at the exact moment Gustavo Gatica was injured. «The audiovisual evidence is compelling,» Judge Cristina Cabello stated while reading the verdict, dismissing that the other two police officers present were involved in the aggression.

However, what was a condemning element for the Public Prosecutor’s Office, the court interpreted as a justified action. The application of the «Naín Retamal» law exonerated Crespo, concluding that his action constituted «legitimate defense,» a concept that was modified by this new legal standard. Had this controversial regulation not existed, he would have been convicted for illegal use of force, as the Public Prosecutor’s Office had requested.

Now, the future of the Gatica case rests in the hands of the Court of Appeals. If the appellate court accepts the nullity request, it would pave the way for a new trial against the former police officer, reopening a judicial process that has kept public opinion on edge and has become a symbol of the ongoing wounds from the social outbreak of 2019.

La entrada No Retreat in Gatica Case: Prosecutors and Complainants Seek to Overturn Acquittal of Claudio Crespo se publicó primero en El Ciudadano.