Have you been charged with a criminal offence due to the state of emergency? Do you have a legal problem? Our lawyers, specialised in administrative law, have compiled this article to provide you with some of the basic information about the criminal consequences of the different types of theft.
State of Emergency
On March 14, 2020, the Royal Decree 463/2020 came into effect. This declared a state of emergency for the management of the health crisis situation caused by Covid-19.
Article 7 of this decree contains, among other things, the measures limiting a person’s freedom of movement. Discussion has arised surrounding the enforcement and the constituionality of this decree.
Subsequently, and after the approval and implementation of Royal Decree 463/2020 (25/10), which declares a new state of emergency to contain the spread of infections caused by SARSCoV-2, a series of restrictive measures have been imposed, which are regulated in the following articles:
- Art. 5 of Royal Decree 926/2020 (25/10) regulates the limitation of freedom of movement of persons at night.
- Art. 6 of Royal Decree 926/2020 (25/10) regulates the limitation of entry and exit in the autonomous communities and cities with a Statue of Autonomy.
- Art. 7 of Royal Decree 926/2020 (25/10) regulates the limitation of the presence of groups of people in public and private spaces.
- Art. 8 of Royal Decree 926/2020 (25/10) regulates the limitation of the presence of people in places of worship.
Fines
Depending on the facts established and the circumstances, the proposed fines range from a minimum of €601 to a maximum of €10,400.
In order to answer this question, we must start from the premise that Royal Decree 926/2020 (25/10) has not expressly introduced the sanctioning power applicable in the event that a citizen infringes the norms brought in with the spread of Covid-19. As well as this, the infringements are defined in a negative rather than a positive sense, this creates a probem of insecurity when looking at these offences.
Procedures for appealing
Investigation and resolution
The administration does not impose fines directly, but first there is an investigation phase, in which the administration verifies the facts reported and whether they should be sanctioned. Thus, the first notification that arrives at home is not the fine itself; it is an agreement in which you are informed that they are going to initiate the procedure and the facts that you are accused of.
Before this first notification, we have 15 days to choose one of the options that the administration gives us: (i) make allegations if we do not agree or (ii) pay the fine with a 50% discount. If we opt for the allegations, the administration will study them, and if it decides to go ahead with the fine, it will respond, and we will have another 15 days to make further allegations to its response. After the final pleadings, the authorities will notify us whether they have decided to fine us or not.
Appeal to the administration
If the administration finally decides to fine us, we can appeal the fine to the administration itself within one month, which will decide whether to confirm the fine or cancel it.Appeal to the courts
If the administration rejects the appeal and confirms the fine, we can go to court to decide definitively whether the fine is legal or illegal. If we choose to pay the fine with a 50% reduction, we can also appeal directly to the courts.
Conclusion
The regulations in relation to appealing state of alarm fines are complex and therefore if you are ever charged with this offence, you should seek legal advice from a competent and experienced administrative law lawyer in Barcelona at an early stage. It is important to remember that in some cases, mistakes can also be made by the police and it is therefore important to ensure that you have been charged fairly.
Our Spanish lawyers specialised in administrative law can help you with your case in Barcelona, Catalonia or other areas of Spain.
If you need further information or legal advice, please do not hesitate to contact our lawyers. You can contact us using the contact form on the website, by sending an email to info@pineradelolmo.com, by Whatsapp if you are in Spain to 675 58 14 62 or if you are abroad to (+34) 675 58 14 62 or by calling 93 514 39 97 with the prefix +34 93 514 39 97 if you are abroad.
Disclaimer: this article is not concrete advice and is not updated with regulatory changes, for up-to-date legal advice that is relevant to your case, please contact our Barcelona lawyers.
Piñera del Olmo
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08036 Barcelona
Phone: +34 93 514 39 97
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Email: rpinera@pineradelolmo.com