Tehuel: Two trials will be held for his disappearance, and one begins in July
The TOC N°2 of La Plata granted the request of one of the defendants and now the Tehuel de la Torre family will have to go through two different legal processes.
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Where is Tehuel? The question, echoed in posters, social media, slogans, graffiti, and chants at every demonstration, remains relevant three years and three months after his disappearance. It's a question that will hopefully find some answer within the justice system.
Weeks before the start of the oral, scheduled for July 15, the Oral Criminal Court (TOC) No. 2 of La Plata accepted the request of the defense attorney for one of the defendants. Two separate trials will be held: one before a panel of judges and another by jury. This decision means that, to obtain justice, the family must endure two trials: one against Oscar Montes and another against Luis Alberto Ramos.
Tehuel de la Torre was last seen on March 11 when he left his home in San Vicente for a job interview with Ramos, who had offered him a job at a food event. He and his friend Montes were the last people to see Tehuel alive. They are also the only ones charged with the alleged murder of the young man, who was 21 years old at the time of his disappearance.
The trial for her disappearance was originally scheduled for August 2027. Following intervention by the Pride and Struggle Front, the now-defunct National Institute Against Discrimination, Xenophobia and Racism (INADI), and the Undersecretary of Diversity Policies of the former Ministry of Women, Gender and Diversity, it was rescheduled for July of this year. It also had the support of the prosecutor in charge of the investigation, Juan Pablo Caniggia.
Reasons for the split
Luis Montes, one of the defendants, made public, through his new defense attorney, a presentation explaining that he was unaware that he could choose between a jury trial and a technical trial to be judged.
The court granted the request, and therefore two trials will be held. One begins in a few weeks (July 15, during the court recess) and will determine the responsibility of Ramos, the other defendant. The other trial, which will determine Montes's responsibility in Tehuel's disappearance, has not yet been scheduled, nor has a court been assigned.
“This means that the family and the entire society will have to go through another trial, all the witnesses will have to testify again; it is a situation of revictimization for the family,” said the plaintiff's lawyer, Flavia Centurión.
The split also implies an effort for the family who had to reinforce the legal team that accompanies Norma Nahuelcura, Tehuel's mother.
The measure seeks to uphold the defendant's constitutional rights. However, it conflicts with the victims' right to justice without undergoing a revictimizing process.
“An untimely request”
The Pride and Struggle Front expressed their concern about the decision of Criminal Court No. 2. They stated that those responsible for the hate crime will be tried separately after "an untimely request" made by one of them.
“We understand that this decision prioritizes the rights of one of the accused over those of the victim of this hate crime and their family. The court's decision to accept the new public defender's appointment after the deadline has passed delays the entire judicial process, further restricting access to justice for trans and gender-diverse people,” the organization stated. They added, “We demand justice for Tehuel de la Torre and that the judicial system take into account the realities and lives of trans and gender-diverse people when making decisions.”
The Front also highlights the implications of this splitting of the trial for Tehuel's family. “This splitting of the Tehuel trial not only affects the family, but also impacts our entire LGBTINB+ community and compels us to continue fighting for truth, reparations, justice, and respect for the rights of trans and gender-diverse people.”
In November 2022, prosecutor Karina Guyot charged Oscar Alberto Montes and Luis Alberto Ramos with the crime of aggravated homicide motivated by hatred based on gender identity. Analysis of security camera footage, Ramos's cell phone containing more than 20 photos dated March 11th showing Tehuel, fragments of the young man's cell phone, and bloodstains were some of the evidence that implicated the accused.
This article was produced in conjunction with the newspaper Tiempo Argentino..
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