Overview
- A summary trial was held Wednesday in the Vigo court's Violence Against Women section over allegations that a lawyer masturbated during a professional videoconference with a female client he represented in a gender-violence case.
- The prosecution and the private accuser asked the court for a 720-euro fine under article 173.4 of the Penal Code and for a prohibition on approaching or contacting the victim for at least six months.
- The defendant did not attend the hearing but sent a written statement that acknowledged the facts while arguing they were not criminal, and he told bar associations he has left the profession and closed his practice.
- The victim testified that she saw the man naked from the waist down in the reflection of his glasses, felt humiliated and scared, took screenshots, and reported the incident to the National Police and the Vigo Bar Association where she was told the lawyer had alleged prior antecedents.
- The judge declined a request to obtain the lawyer's criminal records because article 173.4 cases are treated as a 'delito leve' where recidivism cannot be applied, the hearing was left visto para sentencia, and a penalty will be issued in the forthcoming ruling.