Monsignor José Leonardo Urbina Rodríguez, accused of the alleged crimes of rape and psychological injuries against a teenager, faces the judicial process in “defenselessness”, lawyers and criminal specialists warned. The priest’s private defender, Harry Antonio Valle Palacio, resigned after the initial hearing on Thursday, July 21, in which he devoted himself to praising the regime’s judicial system.
Technically, Valle Palacio —a fan of the Sandinista Front— continues to represent the priest —parish priest of the Perpetuo Socorro church in Boaco—, as long as the court does not admit his resignation. Once this procedure is completed, the judge must appoint a public defender or a court-appointed lawyer, if there is not yet another private defender, to whom he must give legal intervention, explained judicial specialist Yader Morazán. “This person (the priest) cannot be left without legal representation in the process.”
Although the judge has the power to approve or reject the defender’s resignation, Morazán assured that it is not a usual practice for the answer to be negative.
Article 104 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CPP), on the obligation and resignation, states that “the exercise of the position of defense attorney will be mandatory for the lawyer who accepts it, unless a well-founded excuse is admitted by the judge. The defender may waive the exercise of the defense only for just cause; in this case, the judge will set a period of three days for the accused to appoint another. If he fails to do so, he will be replaced by a public or public defender, as appropriate.”
The CPP warns that the lawyer cannot abandon the defense “as long as the person who is to replace him does not intervene.” Until the closing of this note, the judicial Edén Enrique Aguilar Castro, of the Third Court Specialized in Violence against Women, in charge of the priest’s case, had not ruled on the situation of the private lawyer, according to the data reflected in the digital system of the Power Judicial.
The 51-year-old monsignor was arrested last Wednesday, July 13, in Boaco, although the preliminary hearing was held in the Managua Courts, where he was given preventive detention, which he serves in the cells of the Judicial Assistance Directorate ( DAJ), known as El Chipote. In that hearing, Urbina was represented by public defender Jennifer Hernández Granera, who was imposed by the judicial system.
The criminal lawyer Yonarqui Martínez stressed that the priest has been “defenseless” since he was transferred to Managua, where his case receives “disastrous publicity”, referring to the extensive coverage given to him by the regime’s propaganda media, who they have exposed the relatives of the alleged victim.
He added that due process has been violated by denying him the right to defense. According to article 102 of the CPP, when a citizen is in prison, “any person he trusts can propose, orally or in writing, to the competent authority the appointment of the defender, which must be communicated to the accused immediately.”
In the case of the priest, according to Martínez, one of the reasons for not having a proper defense is the lack of communication between the defendant and his relatives, or that it has been difficult for them to find a specialist who accepts to represent the father. He commented that the latter has already happened with several cases of political prisoners, who could not find lawyers to present themselves before the Judiciary.
Private attorney Harry Valle did nothing but commit procedural fraud by simulating the defense of Monsignor Leonardo Urbina. After the hearing he resigned from the position. He is the second lawyer to do the same after the public defender assigned by the judge at the first hearing. pic.twitter.com/uStslFJkNc
– Yader Morazán ⚖️ ?? (@YaderMorazan) July 22, 2022
The defender’s official speech
During his speech at the initial hearing, lawyer Valle Palacio assured that the rights of his client had been respected and pointed out that there was “full confidence in the Judiciary,” despite the fact that said institution has been one of the most questioned for its role. aligned with the Sandinista Front and for impeding due defense in cases of prisoners of conscience.
Martínez stressed that Valle Palacio “I was not exercising a correct defense” and rather focused on giving his opinion on the Judiciary, “when no one asked”. This Thursday it was learned that the defender uses his social networks to express his support for the regime. “The good lawyer does not contradict power,” he wrote on Facebook on July 19, 2021.
According to Morazán, the priest’s defense attorney could be accused by the person who authorized him to represent the defendant, for the crime of paunfaithful patronage, contemplated in article 466 of the Penal Code, which consists “in simulating or deceiving to deliberately harm the interests that have been entrusted to him, aimed at preventing the true administration of justice in a judicial process for his own benefit or that of a third party”.
The accusation of the Public Ministry indicates that the alleged violation was committed against the minor, whose parents are faithful devotees of the Catholic Church. “Due to the degree of trust that existed between the defendant and the victim’s grandmother, the defendant took advantage of this circumstance to approach the victim and gain her trust, to the point that the victim considered and recognized him as her godfather,” he stated. Enmanuel Álvarez, prosecutor of the Public Ministry last week.
The alleged act was committed three times: the first in December 2021; the second last January; and the last one in April of this year, assured Ortega propaganda media outlets, which have exposed the victim’s relatives, despite the fact that Law 779-Comprehensive Law against violence against women- ensures the protection and privacy of the procedural victim.
