Sexual assault

The Supreme Court (TS) has sided with the courts that convicted a man for committing sexual touching on two women without their consent. The events took place on two different occasions, where the accused, with sexual intent, touched the breasts of one woman and the buttocks of another, fleeing after each episode. Initially, the criminal court convicted him of two counts of sexual abuse, but after the appeal filed by his defense, the Provincial Court acquitted him of one and upheld the conviction for the other.

The convicted individual tried to appeal to the TS arguing that the evidence had not been properly assessed, questioning his identification and the application of the criminal law at the time. However, the TS recalls that in this type of appeals they cannot analyze whether the judges have made mistakes in assessing the evidence or if there are procedural errors, except to reinforce a clear violation of the criminal norm in the sentence.

The TS makes it clear that any non-consensual sexual contact, even if brief or surprising, is already considered a crime. Furthermore, it insists that the victim's consent must be clear, never presumed or based on the aggressor's interpretations. Only then can criminal liability be excluded. With all this, the TS confirms the conviction and reinforces the idea that these types of appeals only serve to verify if what the judge has decided fits correctly within criminal law, and not to reevaluate the evidence or testimonies.

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