9. Legal Assistance Fund. In a note of the Inter-American Court’s Secretariat dated October 19, 2019, sent on the instructions of the Court’s President, the requests of the inter-American public defenders and of representative Jemio Mendoza for the victims to access the Legal Assistance Fund were declared admissible. 10. Public hearing. In an order of May 25, 2022, the President of the Court called the parties and the Commission to a public hearing on the preliminary objections and possible merits, reparations and costs.7 The public hearing was held on June 21, 2022, during the Court’s 149th regular session.8 During the hearing the Court received the statements of two alleged victims9 and one expert witness proposed by the inter-American public defenders, and the judges requested specific information and explanations from the parties and the Commission. 11. Final written arguments and observations. On July 21, 2022, the inter-American public defenders and representative Jemio Mendoza each presented their final written arguments. On July 22, 2022, representative Gómez Rojas, the State, and the Commission forwarded their respective final written arguments and final written observations. Representatives Jemio Mendoza and Gómez Rojas and the State attached annexes to their briefs. 12. Observations on the annexes to the final written arguments. On August 8, 2022, the inter-American public defenders indicated that they had no observations to make on the annexes presented by representatives Jemio Mendoza and Gómez Rojas, and the State with their final written arguments. On August 9, 2022, the Commission also indicated that it had no observations to make on the said annexes. On the same date, representative Jemio Mendoza and the State presented their observations on the annexes attached to the final written arguments. No observations were received from representative Gómez Rojas. 13. Request to maintain one name confidential. In a brief of September 16, 2022, the interAmerican public defenders asked that the name of one alleged victim be maintained confidential to prevent her revictimization. The Court admitted this request and the judgment will therefore use the initials F.E.P.M. to refer to this alleged victim. 14. Disbursements from the Legal Assistance Fund. On October 6, 2022, on the instructions of the Court’s President, the Secretariat forwarded information on the disbursements made from the Victims’ Legal Assistance Fund in this case to the State and, as established in article 5 of the Court’s Rules for the Operation of the said Fund, granted it a time frame for presenting any observations it deemed pertinent. The State indicated that it had no observations to make. 15. Deliberation of the case. The Court deliberated on this judgment on October 17 and 18, 2022, in Maldonado, Uruguay, during its 163rd regular session. Cf. Case of Valencia Campos et al. v. Bolivia. Order of the President of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights. May 25, 2022. Available at: https://www.corteidh.or.cr/docs/asuntos/valencia_campos_y_otros_25_05_22.pdf. 7 There appeared at this hearing: (a) for the Inter-American Commission: Erick Acuña Pereda and Paula Rangel, legal advisers; (b) for the representatives of the alleged victims: Silvia Edith Martínez, Jacob Alonso Orribarra, Hugo Jemio Mendoza and Carlos Eduardo Gómez, and (c) for the Plurinational State of Bolivia: Patricia Guzmán Meneses, Jhanneth del Rosio Bustillos Bustillos, and Jaime Mauricio Quiroga Carvajal. 8 9 At the request of her representatives, alleged victim F.E.P.M. provided her statement in private. 6