Judge Pablo Llarena of the Supreme Court will apply the amnesty to former Catalan president Carles Puigdemonts as soon as the Constitutional Court establishes its doctrine on the crime of embezzlement for which the separatist leader is being prosecuted in absentia. Llarena does not need to wait for the constitutional court to resolve the appeal filed by Puigdemonts to apply the amnesty law.
The ruling that is issued regarding Junts Secretary General Jordi Turull will be decisive in determining the application of the amnesty to Puigdemonts, since both are being prosecuted for the same crime of embezzlement. Turull faces a trial where the Supreme Court will have to rule on whether the amnesty covers this type of offense.
With this decision, the return of Carles Puigdemonts to Spain could be brought forward. The Junts leader has been outside the country since 2017, when he fled after the failed attempt at Catalan independence, thus avoiding being detained by Spanish authorities.
