Preventive detention in Spain's Constitutional Court: guarantees and recent case law
Constitutional Court case law on preventive detention: proportionality principle, legitimate purposes, enhanced reasoning requirement and máximum duration doctrine.
# Preventive Detention in Spain's Constitutional Court
Constitutional Basis
Preventive detention affects the fundamental right to personal liberty (Art. 17 CE). The TC's consolidated doctrine (since STC 128/1995) requires four cumulative elements: rational indications of criminal activity, a constitutionally legitimate purpose, strict proportionality, and enhanced judicial reasoning.
Enhanced Reasoning Requirement
The TC has been especially demanding about the reasoning requirement. STC 47/2000 established that detention orders must be self-sufficient, generic references to prosecutor submissions or prior criminal record without concrete analysis of flight risk or recidivism are insufficient.
STC 15/2024: Granted amparo for a detention order invoking "social alarm" without proving the offense fell within Art. 503.1.3ª LECrim. Media impact alone is insufficient.
STC 83/2024: Reaffirms that sentence severity alone is not sufficient when the accused has demonstrated family and employment ties.
Time Limits and Extensions
LECrim establishes máximum periods (1, 2, and 4 years by offense gravity). Each extension must be justified with new elements: reproducing the original reasoning is insufficient (STC 98/1998).
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