In a somewhat bizarre ruling, judge Judge Pío Aguirre of the Jaén Provincial Court decided that a 78-year-old man who has been found guilty of domestic abuse offences on four occasions should return to his home to live with his wife.
Judge Pío Aguirre apparently took the controversial decision regarding the 78-year-old man on the basis that the man ‘hadn’t got anywhere else to go’.
Both the Andalusian public prosecutor and the region’s Women’s Institute have condemned the decision, labelling it a backward step in the fight against gender violence.
The sentence revokes a nine-month prison sentence that had been handed down to Sebastián M. C., for having repeatedly violated a restraining order that his wife had taken out against him. The judge found in favour of an appeal by the defence team, arguing that a jail time could have caused greater harm than it was designed to avoid, given the physical and mental deterioration of the elderly gentleman.
In addition, the defence lawyer argued that the man’s wife had given permission for her husband to return to their home, located in the municipality of Bedmar-Garcíez.
The man has been found guilty of abuse charges on four separate occasions since 2006, all involving his wife.