Criminal
Código Penal Ley 151/2022 in force since December 2022
Ley 151/2022 replaced the 1987 Penal Code, entering into force on 1 December 2022, and was accompanied by Ley 143/2021 on criminal procedure. The new code retains the death penalty for the gravest offences, though no execution has been carried out since 2003, and it retains broadly framed offences against state security that attract sustained international criticism. Prosecutions are conducted by the Fiscalía General de la República.
Key rules
- Jurisdiction — Municipal and Provincial Tribunales Populares; Tribunal Supremo Popular
- Deadline — Detention before being brought before an investigator: 24 hours
- Deadline — Decision on precautionary measures: within 72 hours of detention
- Deadline — Habeas corpus: heard without delay under the 2019 Constitution
Governing law
- Ley 151/2022 Código Penal
- Ley 143/2021 del Proceso Penal
- Ley 152/2022 de Ejecución Penal
- Decreto-Ley 35/2021telecommunications
In practice
The 2021 procedural law introduced clearer time limits and a defined role for defence counsel from the outset of detention, which on paper strengthens the position of the accused compared with the previous regime. In practice the breadth of the state-security offences, and their use following the July 2021 protests, is the feature most commonly raised by international observers.