Compensation for Alhaurin man who waited 9 years for trial

THE State will have to pay €24,000 compensation to a man whose trial was delayed for nine years, causing him personal problems which led to alcoholism.

The man, from Alhaurin el Grande, was checking the oil level of his car in November 1997 when he was involved in a fight in which he and two other people were charged of causing bodily harm, and was facing up to three years in prison.

The case didn’t come to trial until September 2006, and he was acquitted as it was proved that he was approached by the other two men who threw stones at him and hit him with a stick, leaving him unconscious in a pool of blood.

He was granted €38,000 compensation for bodily harm, which was confirmed by the Provincial Court, but his lawyer requested compensation from the state for the unjustified delay in the process, as the prolonged anxiety he suffered led to psychological problems and depression not only to him but also to his wife and to their young son, who witnessed the attack.

In July 2009, the Ministry of Justice awarded him €2,000 for the delay, but he appealed to the National Court which has now awarded him €24,000.