The Provincial Court of Santa Cruz de Tenerife has sentenced a local police officer from the capital of Tenerife to pay a fine of 400 euros and 100 in compensation to a woman whom he assaulted on October 1, 2022 while carrying out a breathalyzer control in which the woman’s driver and husband tested positive.
In addition, the Provincial Court condemns the defendant to pay legal costs that could add up to a maximum of 600 euros.
While the procedures to prepare the report were being carried out, the agents informed the couple that they were going to take the car to the municipal warehouse, to which the victim replied that she had a license and was ready to drive, for which she asked that They did the corresponding test. The convict replied that she “was not going to waste a mouthpiece”, whereupon when she tried to address her husband that she was still inside the vehicle, she was intercepted by the agent.
At that moment, he grabbed her forcefully and took her with her bent arm to the back of the car, while telling another colleague not to intervene. As a result of the force used, the complainant suffered various physical injuries, pain in the neck and a posterior contusion of the right extremity that took two days to heal.
Another local police officer confirmed the complainant’s version and assures that he saw how she was grabbed by the arm and put behind the car while she said that it was an injustice. The partner also added that from her point of view to take the vehicle it was not necessary to stop the woman, as was done.
Several witnesses corroborated that the complainant was aggressive, defended herself with her hands and that the sentenced man’s version was false when he pointed out that he smelled of alcohol and that she was the one who did not want to take the test. In addition, the injury report was provided when the complainant went to a health center at five in the morning to be treated.
In his defense, the policeman assured that the injuries had been caused to himself, even if it was involuntary, due to the resistance action that he showed by holding on to the car door. She said that the sentence in the first instance was a violation of her right to the presumption of innocence.
The response of the Provincial Court is that the evidence was obtained correctly and therefore the conclusions reached are not “irrational, erroneous or arbitrary” and represent proof of charge “sufficient, constitutionally obtained, legally practiced and rationally valued. In this case, moreover, there is not the slightest indication that the complainant had any personal problem with the defendant to attribute false facts to him.
The Court only agreed to reduce the initial fine set at 8 euros for 45 days to 6 euros, but ratified the rest of the court ruling that now becomes final.
