Universal jurisdiction in Spain according to STC 140/2018 of December 20, 2018: Regressivity escapes to the control of constitutionality

Abstract

Last December, our Constitutional Court in its judgment 140/2018 dismissed the unconstitutionality appeal against the LO 1/2014 that gives new regulation to the jurisdiction of the Spanish jurisdiction for the extraterritorial criminal repression of certain crimes. As the court itself acknowledged in its ruling, it was the first time it was required to demonstrate the existence or nonexistence of a constitutional model of extraterritorial extension of the Spanish criminal jurisdiction. Thus, the relevance of this pronouncement that sheds light on the current model of universal jurisdiction in Spain is indisputable, however, this ruling is not without controversy and certainly poses difficulties with respect to the commitment of Spain in the fight against impunity before serious violations of human rights.