Judge grants defense three days to analyze Martinelli case evidence

The judge established that, once the granted term has expired, the defenses will be able to present their observations and requests on the relevance and legality of said evidence, which will define whether these are maintained or not within the process. Although she allowed the Prosecutor's Office to start the presentation of the evidence and for these to be progressively served, she decreed a three-day recess (Friday, Monday and Tuesday) to guarantee that the defenses can analyze them. During the session, defense attorneys reiterated their claims for the incorporation of extraordinary evidence by the prosecutor, ensuring that they did not have prior access and are not formally recorded in the judicial file. Meanwhile, the Prosecutor's Office maintained that the material is relevant to sustain the accusation. Throughout these three days, the process has been marked by repeated requests for respect for due process. In turn, Judge Marquínez said that the Public Ministry will facilitate the evidence in digital format, for which, lawyers interested in receiving them digitized must go to the Court's Secretariat, with storage devices. Faced with the questioning of several lawyers, Judge Baloisa Marquínez decided to grant a three-day term to the defenses so that they can review the objected probatory material in its entirety. Prosecutor Ruth Morcillo presented the defense attorneys with the new probatory material coming from international judicial assistance, mainly from Peru and Andorra. Carrillo explained that the investigation against Martinelli is based on donations received during the political campaign of the years 2008 and 2009, that is, before he was President of the Republic. "What was disloyal was that the Public Ministry kept silent that Brazil had annulled everything derived from the Drousys and My Little Web evidence and that they maintained these accusations," he emphasized. The decision came after an exchange in the courtroom, in which the lawyers insisted that any evidence must be known in a timely manner to guarantee the principle of contradiction. In this sense, lawyer Carlos Carrillo affirmed that it is evident that Ricardo Martinelli's rights have been violated and that his client has no relationship with money laundering or any other illicit acts. The Odebrecht case hearing advanced yesterday with the conclusion of the reading of the order to trial and the beginning of the presentation of evidence by the prosecution. The hearing, after Thursday's session, will resume next Wednesday 21, at 8:00 a.m., when the defense attorneys can raise their objections.