The Public Prosecutor’s Office of the Community of Madrid has filed nine new complaints to investigate whether any nursing home in the region denied healthcare services for discriminatory reasons during the pandemic by the geriatricians of various services in the Community of Madrid and the hospitals located in their respective territories.
As detailed in a statement, last November, the Chief Prosecutor of the Community of Madrid, Almudena Lastra, met with several representatives of Residency Waves and the Truth and Justice Association for Victims in Residences.
During the meeting, they handed Lastra a collective complaint filed on behalf of 109 relatives of 115 people who died from March 2020 and who lived in nursing homes in the Community of Madrid.
Out of these 109 complaints, the Prosecutor’s Office has judicialized nine cases related to deceased individuals whose deaths had not been investigated. In several cases, they agreed to refer them to the corresponding court as there were already ongoing investigations into the same incidents.
On November 6, Lastra signed a decree requesting the submission of a copy of the complaint and the accompanying digital files to the Provincial Prosecutor’s Office of Madrid and the Area Prosecutor’s Offices, as they are the competent authorities to address the allegations in the complaint.
Specifically, regarding the possible commission of a continuous offense under Article 511 of the Penal Code (denial of healthcare services for discriminatory reasons) by the geriatricians of various services in the Community of Madrid and the hospitals located in their respective territories.
Through this legal avenue, nine complaints have been filed. Most of the previous ones were related to offenses of failure to provide assistance and/or negligent homicide.
INVESTIGATION PROCEEDINGS
As a result of this latest complaint, four pre-process investigation proceedings have been initiated in the Madrid Prosecutor’s Office, confirming that they were not part of any other ongoing judicial procedure and thus, a corresponding complaint was filed.
As of December 30, 2024, and regarding the other proceedings opened before that complaint, there were eight cases under process (two in Madrid, two in San Lorenzo de El Escorial, two in Collado-Villalba, one in Majadahonda, and one in Torrelaguna).
With regard to the appeals filed by the prosecutor against the closure of certain proceedings, the number amounts to 17, six of which were from the previous year. Additionally, two appeals were supported by the accusers.
Finally, from September 30, 2022, to December 31, 2024, judicial bodies have closed 54 judicial proceedings, of which 41 have been finalized and 13 are pending resolution of appeals against their dismissal.
In the Getafe-Leganés Area Prosecutor’s Office, a pre-process investigation proceeding has been initiated without any complaints filed to date. Prior to the latest complaint, there are currently two ongoing criminal proceedings. Three have been definitively closed, and one is awaiting a decision on an appeal by the Prosecutor’s Office.
In Alcalá de Henares, 13 investigation proceedings were initiated, one for each elderly person who passed away in the region. In eight cases, they were directly referred to different courts as there were ongoing investigations into the same incidents or investigations were still ongoing. In the remaining five cases, the relatives of the deceased were called in for questioning.
In two cases, it was found that they were already part of ongoing legal proceedings, while in the other three cases, complaints were filed (2 in Alcalá de Henares and 1 in Torrejón de Ardoz).
On the other hand, in Móstoles-Fuenlabrada, 28 pre-process investigation proceedings were initiated, corresponding to 30 deceased individuals, as in two cases, an investigation into the deaths of the complainant’s two parents was requested.
Out of the 21 cases that had previous judicial proceedings, twelve had been closed by the Provincial Court, while the rest are still in the investigative phase.
Regarding the seven ongoing investigation proceedings in the Móstoles Prosecutor’s Office, five are awaiting the forensic medical report. In the other two cases where the report is available, the corresponding complaints have been filed.
