Online protestors face fines over ‘slander’ of Malaga judge

ONE year on from a rape trial that filled the news after Malaga city’s 2014 fair, 11 people may face hefty fines for slander for insulting the judge in charge of the case.

On August 20 2014, the judge ordered a temporary stay of proceedings on a case opened three days beforehand, when a young woman accused five men, two under 18, of raping her at the fair.

That decision to drop the trial was eventually upheld when the woman who had made the accusation later admitted she had made the story up as she was scared a video of her having sex would be made public. However, at the time the judge’s move sparked comments and insults on the internet.

The public prosecutor’s office believes many of these crossed the line between voicing an opinion and committing slander and wants to see the authors of comments on social media punished.

An accusation has been drawn up in which the prosecutor requests €6,000 fines for seven men and four women aged between 25 and 56 along with a total of €20,000 in damages for the judge for distress caused.