Spanish court clears way for judge Garzon to be charged with abuse of power in civil war probe

Spanish super judge Garzon closer to being charged

MADRID — Spain’s Supreme Court cleared the way Thursday for the judge known for indicting Osama bin Laden and Augusto Pinochet to be charged with abuse of power in a probe of civil war atrocities.

The decision by a five-judge panel is a stinging setback for Judge Baltasar Garzon, who is accused of knowingly overstepping the bounds of his jurisdiction in 2008 by investigating the atrocities.

The ultimate decision on whether to charge and put Garzon on trial is up to an investigating magistrate at the Supreme Court. That judge, Luciano Varela, said in a ruling in February that in undertaking the probe, Garzon consciously ignored an amnesty decreed by Parliament in 1977 for civil war-era crimes.

Garzon, 54, appealed against that ruling, denying any wrongdoing and calling his probe legitimate.

Thursday’s decision by the Supreme Court rejected his appeal, allowing the case to proceed and putting it back in the hands of Varela.

At least one more procedural step remains before Varela decides on bringing charges. Varela has to rule on accepting or rejecting a request from Garzon that testimony be heard in his defense from international lawyers specializing in human rights law. Garzon can appeal then, too.

But even if Varela accepts that request, it is ultimately still up to him to decide whether to indict the judge.

If Garzon is convicted of knowingly acting without jurisdiction, he can be suspended from the bench for 10 to 20 years. His lawyer, Gonzalo Martinez-Fresneda, has said that would effectively end the judge’s career.

Garzon’s aborted probe centered on the killings of tens of thousands of civilians by supporters of Gen. Francisco Franco during the 1936-39 civil war and in the early years of his right-wing dictatorship.

It was the first official investigation into a still-divisive period of history, which had been taboo for many Spaniards. Garzon argued that Franco and his cohorts engaged in a crime against humanity — Garzon cited a systematic campaign by Franco to eliminate opponents — and said this had no statute of limitations.

(This version CORRECTS name of judge investigating Garzon to Luciano sted Lucio.)