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appointed Commissioner Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, and Executive Secretary Santiago A.
Canton as delegates and Deputy Executive Secretary Elizabeth Abi-Mershed, and
attorneys Juan Pablo Albán Alencastro, Verónica Gómez, Débora Benchoam and
Silvia Serrano, specialists of the Executive Secretariat, as legal advisers.
2.
The application relates to the criminal proceeding by which Mr. Oscar Enrique
Barreto Leiva (hereinafter, “Mr. Barreto Leiva” or the “alleged victim”) was sentenced
to one year and two months imprisonment for crimes against public property as a
result of his actions while serving as a Director General in 1989, of the Department
of Administration and Services of the Ministry of the Secretariat of the Presidency of
the Republic. According to the Commission, during the processing of a criminal
proceeding before the Supreme Court of Justice against the then President of the
Republic, a senator and a representative, Mr. Barreto was summoned to testify as
witness and later on, an arrest warrant was issued against him. The Commission
argued that in said proceeding, the alleged victim was not notified of the charges
against him due to the secrecy of the investigation phase. Furthermore, the
Commission alleged that the secrecy of the investigation phase implied that Mr.
Barreto Leiva was not able to be assisted by a counsel of his choice during that
phase, to examine and cross-examine witnesses, to have access to the evidence
being gathered, present evidence in his defense and counteract the evidence against
him. Moreover, according to the Commission, the fact that the Supreme Court of
Justice tried, in sole instance, the case of the alleged victim would constitute a
violation of his right to be tried by a competent tribunal, given the fact that his
position did not merit a special criminal privilege, as well as a violation of his right to
appeal an adverse judgment. Finally, the Commission deemed that Mr. Barreto Leivo
was subjected to preventive detention based exclusively on indications of criminal
responsibility, with no possibility of bail, which lasted longer than the final sentenced
imposed.
3.
The Commission requested the Court to declare that the State is responsible
for the violation of the rights enshrined in Articles 7(1), 7(3) and 7(5) (Right to
Personal Liberty), 8(1), 8(2)(b), 8(2)(c), 8(2)(d), 8(2)(f) and 8(2)(h) (Right to a Fair
Trial) and 25(1) (Right to Judicial Protection) of the American Convention, in relation
to the obligations established in Articles 1(1) (Obligation to Respect Rights) and 2
(Domestic Legal Effects) therein, to the detriment of the alleged victim. Moreover,
the Commission requested the Court to order certain measures of reparations.
4.
On January 1, 2009 Mr. Carlos Armando Figueredo Planchard, the
representative of the alleged victim (hereinafter, the “representative”) filed the brief
containing pleadings, motions and evidence (hereinafter, “brief of pleadings and
motions”), by which he arrived at to the same conclusions that the Inter-American
Commission.
5.
On March 14, 2009, the State submitted a brief containing the response to
the application and observations to the brief of pleadings and motions (hereinafter,
“response to the application”). The State alleged that Mr. Barreto Leiva was tried by
the Supreme Court "pursuant to the principle of connection based on ancillary
jurisdiction of the former President of the Republic, but this does not mean that the
State violated the due process of law and the right to be tried by a competent court,
[…] apart from the fact that since it is the maximum judicial instance, he was
provided with more procedural guarantees”. The State appointed Mr. Germán Saltrón
Negretti as Agent and Mr. Larry Devoe Márquez as Deputy Agent. Afterwards, on
April 29, 2009 the State appointed Mr. Gonzalo González Vizcaya as Deputy Agent.