The Civil and Criminal Division of the Supreme Court of Galicia Xustiza (TSXG) confirmed the 47-year prison sentence previously imposed by the Regional Court of Justice Pontevedra. The court rejected the defendant’s appeal and affirmed that the offenses of habitual physical and psychological abuse within a gender-based violence context were proven beyond reasonable doubt. In addition to prison time, the court ordered the defendant to pay 150,000 euros in compensatory damages to the victim for injuries, consequences, and moral harm. The case involved a live-in relationship lasting three years with the victim, who was 19 years old during the relationship. The ruling underscores the severity of the violence and the legal accountability for those actions.
According to the proven facts documented in the decision, the period of the relationship and extending until the victim left the household saw the defendant engaging in controlling, possessive, and violent behavior toward his partner on a daily basis. The violence escalated over time in both frequency and intensity, affecting the victim physically and psychologically.
The Civil and Criminal Chamber highlighted the testimony of the forensic expert involved in the investigation and the oral hearing, noting that the most serious incident described by the examiner is consistent with the overall evidence. The court emphasized its experience in handling violence against women and remarked that it had demonstrated diligence in distinguishing cases where insufficient evidence led to acquittals.
The convicted man had a three-year live-in relationship with the victim, who was 19 years old at the time. The sentence reflects that the defendant employed language meant to insult, belittle, humiliate, and intimidate the victim while repeatedly displaying violent and aggressive conduct. The acts included slapping the woman in the face and mouth on a daily basis and inflicting blows to various parts of her body. The record indicates that the violence extended to kicking, punching, and blows that caused the victim to lose consciousness on some occasions. The court documented that the defendant twisted fingers and wrists, pulled hair, squeezed the neck, and used rods and cables to whip the victim.
The judges described the defendant as acting with a pervasive disdain for the victim, treating her as if she held no autonomy within the relationship and as though he possessed absolute control. The prolonged violent behavior caused substantial physical and psychological suffering and created a constant atmosphere of fear within the couple. As the relationship neared its end, the defendant allegedly exercised control over the victim, restricted her social and family interactions, and retained possession of her mobile phone, limiting access to communication in the presence of the abuser.
The court noted additional coercive acts such as prohibiting the victim from sharing a bed, forcing her to sleep on the floor with the family dog, and requiring her to remain kneeling for extended periods. During this period, the defendant purportedly refused to allow the victim to seek medical care, with instructions to rely on self-treatment using water, vinegar, and salt. The same narrative described episodes of humiliation, including persistent bed restrictions and forced subservience.
Instances of sexual coercion were described as occurring with increasing frequency in the final months of the relationship. The victim reportedly resisted sexual advances, yet the defendant allegedly persisted through violence, including slaps, hair pulling, and pushing until she consented. The medical record described fractures consistent with repeated assaults, such as damage to the ear cartilage, nasal septum, lips, ribs, a humerus, and a femur. The authorities acknowledged limitations in measuring the precise number of distinct attacks due to gaps in individual medical documentation. An appeal of the TSXG decision may be directed to the Supreme Court.