Isha Sesay
A POLICE officer has been exonerated for using his baton on two British tourists in Mallorca in October 2018.
The Guardia Civil agent had appealed a penalty handed to him for using a weapon without cause at the Military Court.
The court heard how the officer had been on patrol with his colleague in the early hours of the morning on a popular party strip in Magaluf.
Just before 4am they watched a group of British holidaymakers being thrown out of a bar.
They were allegedly kicked out for being drunk and starting a fight with another group of Brits inside.
After being forced to leave the bar they reportedly threatened and insulted security staff.
The police officers then proceeded to intervene in a bid to calm the Brits but claimed that they were also threatened.
It was then that the agent removed his baton, striking one man on the back and a woman on her stomach.
The court found that the officer’s response was justified as the ‘tourists showed a violent attitude’ and attempts to ‘diffuse the situation verbally’ were unsuccessful.
His penalty, which amounted to five days of his salary, has been subsequently annulled.
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in Strasbourg ruled in favour of protestor, Montserrat Laguna Guzman, who suffered permanent injuries after she was struck by a police baton.
They ordered that she be paid €248.10 for fees and expenses for ‘not protecting her right to assembly’ which breaches the rules of the European Convention on Human Rights.
