Santander (EFE).- The Government of Cantabria has already implemented the new recording system in 14 of the 44 courtrooms of the region’s courts, a project that began in March and will conclude in June with its full implementation.
These media will reach the eight judicial districts of the autonomous community to integrate the video recordings of the judicial proceedings into the judicial file, according to what sources from the Ministry of Justice have indicated to EFE.
Specifically, the new equipment has already been deployed in the hearing rooms of the courts located in the Europa Building, in the first instance and instruction courts of Torrelavega, Reinosa and San Vidente de la Barquera.
This has allowed more than 70 recording sessions to be transferred to the parties in the judicial processes and more than 150 reproductions have been recorded.
Next week the deployment will begin in the courts of Medio Cudeyo, Santoña, Laredo and Castro Urdiales. In June, work will be resumed in the judicial district of Santander and the deployment will be completed in the twenty pending courtrooms in Las Salesas and Calle Alta.
All files, in electronic format
The Cantabrian Government will also install the recording system in other multipurpose and videoconference rooms at the judicial headquarters of Santander, Torrelavega, the Prosecutor’s Office, the Dean of Judges and another room used by the psychosocial team, until reaching 50 teams deployed.
The process includes both the installation of the equipment and the integration of the recordings into the Vereda procedural management system, which will mean “closing the circle” and that all the documents and procedures of the judicial file are accessible electronically and, thus, faster and with legal guarantees.
Thus, professionals can download all the recordings that are made of a procedure in which they have intervened, which have an index of the interventions that take place during the judicial act, which speeds up their subsequent search for lawyers, magistrates and other professionals. who access this type of information.
The system also allows content to be converted to text to allow indexed search by words.
Some 600,000 euros have been invested to undertake this project, supported by European funds, which have served to improve the capacity of video storage servers and to acquire videoconferencing systems and microphones.
Better protection of victims
In addition, the regional Executive is working on another project to improve the comprehensive protection of crime victims, with special attention to the most vulnerable, such as women and minors.
In line with the improvements made in the Office for Victims of Crime or in judicial offices with differentiated routes so that victims do not have to cross paths with their aggressors, a Gesell room will be installed in Las Salesas.
This space, which aims to facilitate statements in a positive environment, is made up of two adjoining rooms separated by unilateral vision glass, which makes it possible for one room to have a clear view of the other, but not the other way around.
The statement thus remains as preconstituted evidence, preventing the victim from having to repeat it during the oral hearing.
In short, it is about preventing their re-victimization during the judicial process, says the Cantabrian Government, which intends to set up another room like this one in the Torrelavega courts.