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| Spanish doctor found guilty but acquitted in 'stolen babies' case | Spanish doctor found guilty but acquitted in 'stolen babies' case |
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| An elderly Spanish doctor who became the first person to stand trial over the country’s infamous “stolen babies” scandal has been found guilty of all charges but acquitted because the statute of limitations had expired. | An elderly Spanish doctor who became the first person to stand trial over the country’s infamous “stolen babies” scandal has been found guilty of all charges but acquitted because the statute of limitations had expired. |
| Eduardo Vela, who worked as a gynaecologist at the San Ramón clinic in Madrid, had been accused of taking Inés Madrigal from her biological mother in the spring of 1969 and giving her to the 46-year-old woman who was falsely certified as her birth mother and who would raise her. | Eduardo Vela, who worked as a gynaecologist at the San Ramón clinic in Madrid, had been accused of taking Inés Madrigal from her biological mother in the spring of 1969 and giving her to the 46-year-old woman who was falsely certified as her birth mother and who would raise her. |
| Prosecutors had sought an 11-year prison sentence for Vela on charges of unlawful detention, falsifying official documents and certifying a non-existent birth. | Prosecutors had sought an 11-year prison sentence for Vela on charges of unlawful detention, falsifying official documents and certifying a non-existent birth. |
| Judges at Madrid’s provincial court on Monday said that Vela’s landmark trial, which began at the end of June, had “indisputably proved” that he had committed the three offences and it was “crystal clear” the doctor, now 85, had faked official documents and handed the baby over to a couple who were not her parents. | Judges at Madrid’s provincial court on Monday said that Vela’s landmark trial, which began at the end of June, had “indisputably proved” that he had committed the three offences and it was “crystal clear” the doctor, now 85, had faked official documents and handed the baby over to a couple who were not her parents. |
| However, they ruled that too much time had passed for a conviction since Madrigal could not have been unlawfully detained once she became an adult and had only brought her complaint against Varela six years ago. | |
| “As a consequence of all the above, and noting that the complainant reached her majority on 4 June 1987, and that the statute of limitations for the most serious crime – unlawful detention – is 10 years, and that the complaint was brought in April 2012, the crimes have expired under the statue of limitations,” they said in their judgment. | |
| The trial was a test case for the thousands of families who are thought to have been caught up in the illegal practice, which began shortly after Franco’s victory in the civil war and continued until well after the dictator’s death in 1975. | The trial was a test case for the thousands of families who are thought to have been caught up in the illegal practice, which began shortly after Franco’s victory in the civil war and continued until well after the dictator’s death in 1975. |
| Some estimates have suggested that as many as 300,000 babies may have been taken from their birth mothers and placed with other families who supported the Franco regime. | Some estimates have suggested that as many as 300,000 babies may have been taken from their birth mothers and placed with other families who supported the Franco regime. |
| Among those women targeted were single mothers, those with “degenerate” political views or those from poor backgrounds. | Among those women targeted were single mothers, those with “degenerate” political views or those from poor backgrounds. |
| Madrigal, whose mother told her the truth about her birth when she turned 18, described the court’s decision as “bittersweet” and said she would appeal against it. | Madrigal, whose mother told her the truth about her birth when she turned 18, described the court’s decision as “bittersweet” and said she would appeal against it. |
| “They’ve acknowledged that there was theft here,” she told reporters outside court. “That’s a big step, but then there’s the issue of the statute of limitations, which I hadn’t been expecting.” | “They’ve acknowledged that there was theft here,” she told reporters outside court. “That’s a big step, but then there’s the issue of the statute of limitations, which I hadn’t been expecting.” |
| She added: “We’ll appeal to the supreme court, not just for me, but for the hundreds of cases of stolen babies.” | She added: “We’ll appeal to the supreme court, not just for me, but for the hundreds of cases of stolen babies.” |
| Madrigal said her mother, who died two years ago at the age of 93, had supported her efforts to find justice and answers. | Madrigal said her mother, who died two years ago at the age of 93, had supported her efforts to find justice and answers. |
| “I always say she didn’t give birth to me but I was born in her heart,” Madrigal told the Guardian before the trial. “She lived to look after me and see me happy.” | “I always say she didn’t give birth to me but I was born in her heart,” Madrigal told the Guardian before the trial. “She lived to look after me and see me happy.” |
| Madrigal, a railway worker and president of the Murcia branch of the SOS Stolen Babies association, had also acknowledged that the trial was unlikely to bring her real closure. | Madrigal, a railway worker and president of the Murcia branch of the SOS Stolen Babies association, had also acknowledged that the trial was unlikely to bring her real closure. |
| She always doubted that Vela, who had denied the charges, would volunteer all the facts. | She always doubted that Vela, who had denied the charges, would volunteer all the facts. |
| “He’s not going to tell me who my mother is or about the circumstances in which I was taken from her,” she said. | “He’s not going to tell me who my mother is or about the circumstances in which I was taken from her,” she said. |
| “I’m not so naive as to believe that’s going to happen but I’d love it if we could get the records of all the women who gave birth at the San Ramón clinic. But that probably won’t happen and I have to resign myself to reality.” | “I’m not so naive as to believe that’s going to happen but I’d love it if we could get the records of all the women who gave birth at the San Ramón clinic. But that probably won’t happen and I have to resign myself to reality.” |
| Madrigal said she hoped her legal action would be first of many brought by stolen babies and their families. | Madrigal said she hoped her legal action would be first of many brought by stolen babies and their families. |
| “This is a really important issue because, for 60 years, we were the baby supermarket for Europe and for South America, not just Spain,” she said. | “This is a really important issue because, for 60 years, we were the baby supermarket for Europe and for South America, not just Spain,” she said. |
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