Odebrecht Defense Attorneys Deny Procedural Fairness

Defense attorneys expressed concern over the resumption of the Odebrecht trial, stating that the process should not have begun due to procedural violations. The defense stated that they must submit to the judge's rulings, even when it affects the balance of the process. They also denounced that many of the evidence presented lacks proper authentication. The defense emphasized that the judge is obligated to resolve formal errors and nullities before delving into the case's merits, regardless of social or media pressure for convictions. Lawyer Meilán stated that the process is riddled with nullities, especially since several pieces of evidence sought to be admitted were annulled in Brazil after it was revealed that some convictions were overturned due to evidence tampering. He also criticized the judge for intending to rule based solely on the interviews contained in the file, which in his view does not guarantee the right to a fair trial. The defense stated that they were not even formally notified of a change. Meilán also pointed out that Judge Marquínez is simultaneously handling the Fisher case within the Accusatory Penal System, a situation that, according to the defense, compromises the proper direction of both proceedings. Another critical point raised by the defense is the conduct of the Prosecutor's Office, particularly due to the late introduction of so-called 'extraordinary evidence.' Prosecutor Ruth Morcillo appeared with 13,000 pages that, according to Meilán, she never managed to practice during the investigation stage. Although they managed to extract copies of the file on a USB, Meilán warned that the hearing resumed with the clear intention of accelerating the process, due to the judge's workload. This situation caused a recess of only three days, which the defense considers insufficient to analyze such an extensive volume of documentation. 'They want us to put our foot on the accelerator,' Meilán complained.