The High Court of Galicia, known as the TSXG, upheld a lengthy sentence handed down earlier in the year by the Pontevedra County Court’s fourth division. The conviction centers on repeated sexual assault against a daughter who was initially five years old and continued until she was nearly seventeen, a period during which the alleged abuses were not reported until she reached near adulthood. The same individual faced additional charges related to violent conduct toward his wife, spanning several decades and culminating in a documented pattern of mental and emotional harm within the marriage.
The Civil and Criminal Division rejected the appeal lodged by the prosecuted person and refused any alteration to the sentence in alignment with changes introduced by the new integrated framework governing sexual freedom protections. The court underscored that rivering the punishment would be inappropriate given the elements involved, particularly in relation to the marital bond between the accused and the victim. In the court’s view, the case encompasses not only the sexual assault crime described in Article 179 of the Penal Code, but also the aggravated subtype defined by Article 180.4 under the current text. This aggravated form applies when the victim has been or remains a spouse or has shared an intimate relationship with the offender, even if cohabitation has ended. The panel noted that the penalties specified for these circumstances range from seven to fifteen years, and that, under the current legal framework, the minimum applicable sentence would be seven years based on proven facts. Consequently, the court concluded that the Pontevedra sentence, affirmed by the TSXG, was appropriately aligned with the law and the evidence, and did not merit a reduction or reversal in the applicant’s favor.
A broader recognition of the penalties involved is reflected in the Pontevedra Court’s ruling, which included a fifteen-year term for repeatedly committing sexual assault against a minor within the context of a close family relationship and the accompanying prohibition on contact with and proximity to the daughter, along with a financial award intended to compensate the victim for damages. In addition, the verdict imposed nine years of imprisonment for habitual psychic violence and sexual assault against the wife, and a separate prohibition on approaching or communicating with her. This latter restriction carried a term extending thirteen years beyond the time actually served, while a compensation payment of fifteen thousand euros was ordered to further address the impact of the offenses. The combined structure of these penalties reinforces the court’s intent to address both the direct harm inflicted on the daughter and the broader harm produced within the family unit, signaling a firm stance against offenses of this nature and a commitment to ongoing protection for victims in similar situations. The judgments collectively reflect the legal framework that governs crimes of a sexual and coercive nature within familial contexts, and they illustrate how the judiciary interprets evolving statutory provisions when applied to longstanding patterns of abuse within intimate relationships. The decision also emphasizes the role of the judiciary in ensuring that multiple sanctions—spanning prison terms, contact prohibitions, and monetary compensation—work together to support the victim and deter future offenses. In this sense, the court’s approach aligns with contemporary standards for accountability in cases of sexual violence and domestic abuse, while maintaining attention to the specifics of each relationship and the severity of the conduct involved.