The people who have been convicted of sexual crimes They will not be able to withdraw their files from the Central Registry of Sexual Offenders until the deadline set by the Royal Decree that regulates this file is met, even if the events occurred before 2016when the rule came into force.
This has been established by the National audience in a recent ruling, which is not yet final, in which it rejects the petition of a man who was sentenced to six months in prison for disseminate pornographic material to minors and people with disabilities in 2015.
Thirty years
He Royal Decree 1110/2015of December 11, which regulates the Central Registry of Sexual Offenders, establishes that when the victim is a minor and the convicted person is of legal age, the cancellation of the file will be carried out when they have passed thirty years from the completion of the sentence.
The defense lawyer alleges that, although it is obvious that the deadline has not yet passed, the facts for which the criminal was convicted They happened at the end of 2015, before the creation of the Registry. He argues that the law is not retroactive and, therefore, the provisions of the regulations cannot be applied to it.
“The data of my client in said Central Registry of Sexual Offenders should never have been included”, maintains the lawyer.
The youngest in the center
Regarding the thirty-day period, the Council of State unanimously issued an opinion in which it stated that “the constancy of the data recorded in the Central Registry of sexual offenders for a period greater than that established for the cancellation of criminal records can be very convenient to protect the best interests of minors old, without being contrary to the principle of proportionality”.
Furthermore, the explanatory memorandum of the Royal Decree makes it clear that it is structured on the basis of the fundamental right of the minor to that your best interest is priority.
This principle responds to the Council of Europe Convention for the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Abuse, of October 25, 2007. Many European directives determine this commitment to the protection of minors and obliges member states to adopt national laws for this.
Prohibition of working with children
With recent regulations, appearing on the Sex Offender Registry prevents those convicted practice professions or activities that involve regular contact with minors.
“For this reason, the permanence of registrations for a period much longer than that of the cancellation of criminal records (in cases of victims of minors),” explains the judge of the National Court.
Retroactive application
On the other hand, the Chamber concludes that “It is appropriate to consider that the retroactive application” because the interest of the minor prevails.
“The disqualification must also reach those who were convicted by a final sentence for the crimes established therein.” committed prior to the entry into force of Law 26/2015”, specifies.
The ruling dismisses the convicted person’s appeal considering that none of the rights established by the Constitution have been violated, neither the right to effective judicial protection nor the law that guarantees the right to work.