Spain's Supreme Court magistrate Manuel Marchena has called for prohibiting political parties from exercising popular prosecution, arguing that their participation in trials politicizes the justice system and shifts parliamentary battles into courtrooms.
Speaking Monday at a CEU summer conference in San Lorenzo de El Escorial, Marchena described Spain's system as globally unique, allowing one party to prosecute another, while cautioning that unjustified restrictions on citizen prosecutions would risk going too far. He also proposed raising educational requirements for jury members and narrowing the crimes tried by jury.
Marchena labeled public distrust of judges a "tragedy", noting a recent poll found three-quarters of Spaniards believe parties influence judicial decisions. He declined to address whether the Supreme Court should have awaited a European ruling before deciding the Catalan independence case.