A popular jury has declared not guilty an 86-year-old man accused of killing his 81-year-old wife, giving her more than fourteen blows to the head with a hammer after an argument at their home in Madrid in 2021, considering that she had their capabilities nullified.
In its verdict, according to legal sources collected by the Efe agency, the jury has ruled that the accused, Eduardo G., at the time of committing the crime suffered from a "jealous delusion", a disorder characterized by believing that one is being deceived by the couple, which is why he believed that his abilities were nullified.
The Provincial Court of Madrid concluded this week the trial in which the Prosecutor's Office has maintained the sentence of 15 years in prison for the accused, although at the beginning of the trial it stated that it would consider exonerating him completely if the question of his capabilities was proven during the process. cognitive.
However, contrary to what was stated by the jury, the prosecutor has argued that the accused had his abilities "altered" and not "nullified" and has opted for an incomplete defense.
After the popular jury has pronounced itself, the president of the chamber must issue a sentence in accordance with the verdict of not guilty, for which he would not be criminally punished.
The defense lawyer, for her part, has requested the free acquittal of her client at all times.
In statements to Efe, this lawyer explained that the report made to the accused in 2021 already "made it clear" that he did not have the cognitive and volitional abilities when he committed the murder, with which the jury agreed.
According to the indictment of the Public Ministry, the crime occurred around eight in the afternoon on June 15, 2021, when the accused, after an argument with his wife in the kitchen of the family home, picked up a hammer and, "without "she might have expected an attack on his part, he unexpectedly and suddenly hit her on the head."
He adds that the wife fled to the living room, fell to the floor and her husband continued to hit her on the head more than fourteen times "with extreme aggression."
The police officers arrived at the house moments later and arrested the accused who, according to the prosecutor, wanted to "impose his will" and express his control over his wife's life by believing that she had an extramarital relationship and that she was going to kill him. abandon. The victim was taken to the 12 de Octubre hospital in Madrid, where she died in the early hours of the next day.
