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Original article: “Encierro, golpes y pérdida de dentadura”: Estado deberá pagar $30 millones a dirigente estudiantil torturado por Carabineros en dictadura

The Eighth Chamber of the Santiago Court of Appeals has issued a unanimous ruling that confirms and increases the compensation for moral damages to 30 million pesos that the state must pay to student leader C.R.L.A., who was detained and tortured by Carabineros during the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet in 1985 and 1988.

The court, comprised of judges Alejandro Rivera, Daniel Aravena, and acting attorney María Soledad Krause, upheld the initial ruling made by the 24th Civil Court of Santiago, prudently increasing the amount «in proportion to the damage proven in the case.»

«Detention, Beatings, and Tooth Loss»

At the time of the incidents, C.R.L.A. was 23 years old, a student, and a community leader in Las Condes and a member of the Christian Left. According to the ruling, he was detained twice by Carabineros personnel.

The first detention occurred on November 5, 1985, at the intersection of Alameda and Ahumada during a social mobilization in support of imprisoned leaders. He was taken to the Fourth Police Station, where his captors reportedly tortured him with kicks, punches to various parts of his body, and buttstock blows during the approximately eight hours he was held, ultimately being summoned to the Local Police Court for allegedly causing public disturbances.

The ruling states that he was detained for a second time on October 23, 1988, on the public road at Alameda and General Velásquez in the Estación Central commune, by special forces from Carabineros after an event organized by the United Left, and was taken to a police station on Chiloé Street, where he again endured kicks and punches, particularly to the face and head, resulting in the loss of his upper front teeth. He also faced insults, mistreatment, and humiliation, including being forced to sleep in a pool.

On the following day, October 24, 1988, he was transferred to the 21st Police Station in Estación Central. On the same day, he was brought before the Second Military Court accused of damaging state property and offenses against Carabineros and was incarcerated, from where he secured unconditional release on October 28, 1988.

The court established that Loyola had been subjected to «confinement and torture in various establishments, remaining deprived of liberty for several days,» during which he suffered «kicks and punches, buttstock blows, and other tortures and humiliations» that resulted in «permanent physical sequelae, such as the loss of his teeth, along with significant psychological and mental scars.»

Compensation for Moral Damages to Student Leader

In its ruling, the Court of Appeals noted that «the compensation for moral damages does not aim to restore the situation of the person who has suffered harm, but merely to compensate it, which always entails an imperfect form derived from the nature of the suffering endured.»

The court applied established jurisprudential criteria for cases of human rights violations, considering the nature, extent, and severity of the inflicted damages; the intensity and circumstances of the mistreatment and injuries suffered; the claimant’s age at the time of the events; the duration and impact of the suffering; and the persistence of such effects over time, along with resolutions in similar cases.

The ruling rejected two exceptions raised by the State of Chile and partially granted the request to increase the compensation amount, ultimately setting it at 30 million pesos.

«Considering the previous parameters, it is reasonable to estimate that the compensation for such damages should reach the sum of $30,000,000, thereby partially accepting the claimant’s request to increase the compensation amount she sought, while rejecting that of the State of Chile,» concluded the appellate court.
The ruling comes at a time when the Chilean judiciary continues to process cases of human rights violations that occurred during the civic-military dictatorship (1973-1990).

The case of C.R.L.A. illustrates the pattern of systematic violence exercised against political opponents during the dictatorship, particularly against young students and social leaders. The physical and psychological repercussions, recognized by the court as permanent, endure more than three decades after the events.

View the Court of Appeals ruling

La entrada State Ordered to Pay $30 Million to Tortured Student Leader Following Pinochet Era Atrocities se publicó primero en El Ciudadano.