Overview
- The Buenos Aires trial before Oral Court No. 5 opened Monday, and the 69-year-old defendant arrived in custody and chose not to testify.
- The sole survivor, Sofía Castro Riglos, is not giving evidence now on her doctors’ advice because of trauma.
- Prosecutors accuse Justo Fernando Barrientos of triple aggravated homicide and the attempted murder of a fourth woman, citing hatred of the victims’ sexual orientation, ambush, and extreme cruelty that can carry life in prison.
- Judges limited live streaming to hearings with experts or public officials, and the next session on May 22 is set to hear two police who responded that night.
- The case centers on an alleged firebomb thrown into the women’s room after prior homophobic threats, and rights groups seek its recognition as a “lesbicidio,” a hate killing of lesbians that could shape how courts handle anti-LGBTI+ violence.