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(CNN Spanish) - Women who are part of feminist organizations concentrated on Monday in front of the judicial center “Isidro Menéndez” in San Salvador to protest against the ruling of the First Criminal Chamber.
The ruling indicates that Judge Eduardo Jaime Escalante did not commit a crime, but a failure to touch the genitals of a ten-year-old girl, on February 18 in Tonacatepeque, about 26 kilometers from San Salvador.
In that case, the Attorney General of El Salvador accuses Escalante of sexual assault. Raúl Melara, attorney general reiterated this Monday, at a press conference, that he will appeal the decision of the magistrates.
Through a statement issued on Monday, the judges of the Criminal Chamber point out that the criminalization of the act as a fault and not a crime was established based on the analysis of the evidence provided by the Prosecutor and the lawyers.
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In the analysis of the judges of the Chamber, this type of offenses is regulated by an article of the Criminal Code that establishes a fine for “impunity touching” in public places.
Judge Escalante Díaz told reporters on March 22, when he was notified of the accusation, that he "was given the benefit of the doubt" and described the statement as "mischievous." He also asked to wait for a final ruling to be issued before he was found guilty.
The failure of the Chamber has caused reactions in different sectors. For example, President Nayib Bukele asked the Supreme Court to investigate the magistrates who issued the ruling.
For their part, the magistrates of the Criminal Chamber describe the call of the Salvadoran president as interference of powers.
The case, according to the ruling of the Chamber, must continue in a peace court.