Status: 10/27/2021 10:19 a.m.
Football professional Lucas Hernández from FC Bayern Munich doesn’t have to go to jail in Spain.
Bayern professional
Image: Tom Weller / dpa
The Spanish judiciary has granted an appeal by the lawyers of the 25-year-old Frenchman, as the regional court in Madrid announced. The six-month prison sentence for domestic violence was already imposed by a criminal court in Madrid in 2019.
“We are of the opinion that the appeal should be allowed and the custody date will be lifted,” said the court in a statement. The sentence was suspended for four years. In addition, the court issued a fine of 240 daily rates of 400 euros (96,000 euros) each against the 25-year-old.
The all-clear came shortly before the deadline. The time limit for starting the prison sentence would have expired at midnight on Thursday. If the judicial decision had been delayed, the ongoing appeal proceedings would not have had suspensive effect.
Violation of an approach and contact ban
The background to the case is a tangible dispute between the 2018 world champion and his then girlfriend and current wife, which occurred four and a half years ago – in February 2017 – when Hernández was still playing for Atlético Madrid. Both were sentenced to community service and a six-month ban on contact for domestic violence.
Since they were quickly reconciled at the time, Hernández and his partner went away together for the six months. The problem: The professional violated the ban on approach. Therefore, he was sentenced to prison.
Judgment surprising for experts – Hernández not a first-time offender
In Spain, the fight against domestic violence is taken very seriously. The courts judge severely and the media report extensively, even when it comes to unknown people. There is still a ban on contact in Spain even if there has been a reconciliation so that no one can be pressured into such a reconciliation.
The new judgment comes as a surprise. A majority of experts had expected that the appeal would be rejected. Partly because Hernández is not a so-called first-time offender. According to the judiciary, there have been two final convictions against him for domestic violence.
Source: sportschau.de