Venezuelan Political Prisoner Looks to Spain’s National Court for Help with Release

Faced with the unlikelihood of Goicoechea’s release, his wife Rosaura Giorgina Valentini decided to take an unorthodox approach to advocating his freedom. First, she filed an appeal with the Spanish National Court, as Goicoechea has had Spanish nationality since 2016. At first, the courts wouldn’t hear her complaint to investigate the Venezuelan government because there was no precedent to do so in the entire history of Spanish law. This weekend, however, officials announced that the decision is being reevaluated by the Plenary Room of the National Court, which is composed of 20 magistrates. More…