5
14)
“in view of the decision by the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation”,
the 4th National Juvenile Court (hereinafter “the 4th Court”) was
designated to hear the case. On September 30, 1994 said Court
ordered preventive detention of Police Captain Miguel Ángel Espósito
for the crime of aggravated illegal imprisonment and set a
$100,000.00 (one hundred thousand pesos) impounding. On February
7, 1995 the higher court confirmed preventive detention in response to
an appeal filed by the defense counsel for Miguel Ángel Espósito. That
same day, the next of kin of Walter David Bulacio supplied new
evidence and requested reopening of the investigation on “injuries,
unlawful coercion and torment followed by death.”
The Public
Prosecutor’s Office adhered to this request and on February 22, 1995
the 4th Court ordered that the investigation begin anew, ordering the
gathering of the evidence requested;
15)
on February 22, 1995 the preliminary proceedings were reopened and
Fabián Rodolfo Sliwa, “a former officer who, according [to what he
himself] said to the media, had witnessed the physical punishment of
Walter [David] Bulacio by Police Captain Miguel Ángel Espósito,” was
summoned as a witness. The defense counsel for Police Captain
Espósito sought, unsuccessfully, to challenge the witness and filed an
objection;
16)
on May 22, 1995 the defense counsel for Police Captain Espósito filed a
motion for “promoción de especialidad” and requested that a trial court
for adults intervene, rather than the juvenile court that had been
intervening since 1991, for which reason the 4th National Juvenile
Court and the 5th and 32d National Criminal Examining Courts of First
Instance were disqualified;
17)
on August 24, 1995 the Appellate Court decided that the 4th Court
should continue to hear the case;
18)
between November, 1995 and February, 1996 the 4th Court took
judicial steps to corroborate what witness Sliwa had stated in his
testimony.
Notwithstanding the above, said Court “provisionally
dismissed” in the preliminary proceedings with respect to “the fact of
injuries followed by death” suffered by minor Walter David Bulacio, on
March 8, 1996. No person had been prosecuted for that fact. The
defense counsel for Police Captain Espósito requested “definitive
dismissal,” which was denied on March 19, 1996, and the “provisional
dismissal” remained in effect and the preliminary proceedings were
closed regarding illegal imprisonment, for which crime pre-trial
detention had been ordered;
19)
the main case file was forwarded to the “W” National Trial Court
(hereinafter “W Court”), where on April 18 and May 16, 1996,
respectively, the prosecutor, representing a group of victims, and the
representatives of the parents of Walter David Bulacio filed charges
and criminal prosecution in full trial against Police Captain Espósito;
20)
on June 28, 1996 the defense counsel for Police Captain Espósito filed
an objection challenging the prosecutor, as well as an objection