What motivated you to choose criminal law as your specialty?
The fact of studying law has to do with a personal and family history, that from a very young age I was always linked to this world, although indirectly, first with the divorce of my parents, which at that time was not very common in the year 1986/1987, later due to tenure issues of one of my brothers where the lawyer’s call was crucial for our life and economy, in that many years and assets were lost to us as well.
At that time, my father was fighting for my brother’s tenure, my mother was not interested in that situation or in that of my sister and me. At that time and even in these times it is still difficult for the male father to be given custody of the children, in more than 30 years many things have not changed. It is because of this type of thing that I always expected that call and saw that our situation changed or not according to that blessed call, for which, beyond naturally having the ability to always defend another, in any situation, I wanted the day when to receive me, to help in whatever way possible from my place to others. At that time and for a long time, that ideal guided me a lot. Nowadays, I understand that sometimes it is achieved and sometimes it is not, but I still have the desire to always make a difference.
What challenges have you faced in your career as a criminal lawyer?
The main challenge that I still face today is to find a place for myself, I do not come from a family of lawyers and I had to start from scratch. Trying to settle in the middle, added to the fact that we talk nothing more and nothing less than criminal law, that in general, when they see a woman they already doubt if I am really going to be able to defend them and have the expected results. Even in police stations and prisons, they rarely give me my place as a lawyer and when they address me, they do so in the terms of “sra”, in certain places they act as if to scare me or intimidate me, leaving me locked up with detainees, when I don’t corresponds. I mention this last point, not because I had suffered fear or intimidation, which I understand was the end sought, but out of indignation at knowing that they certainly wouldn’t do it to a man.
Currently certain things happen less, but they continue to happen.
What notable cases have you handled or are you currently handling?
As prominent cases, I am currently in the Iron Mountain case, as a defender, and who has led the case of Marco Stell’s son, representing the ex-wife in different causes.
What advice would you give to young lawyers who want to dedicate themselves to criminal law?
As my main advice, I would tell you to think carefully if it is what you like and are passionate about, because this branch is 24/7, there are no holidays, vacations or rest hours, when certain things happen and they call us, we have to respond and that is at any time, depending on the case (arrests, releases).
In the same sense, they have to feel passionate about what they are doing, be very clear about the role of the criminal lawyer, especially the defense attorney, who is so questioned, and not get carried away by prejudices.
On the other hand, and that would be for all branches of the profession, never stop studying and update, always be in continuous study, and question the rules, have a critical and constructive look at the same time, with innovative proposals that help improve the conditions and/or rights of their clients.
They should not get discouraged, in this branch it is often easy to feel a certain frustration for the results that are being obtained, the lawyer can not always obtain the dismissal or the acquittal of his defendants, because not all the crimes or the contexts of that person are the same, then you have to find the best solution to the situation you are experiencing, which does not always come hand in hand with being completely detached from the cause.
You have to have character, this branch is not for everyone, in the sense that it deals with very difficult and sensitive situations and one cannot get hooked on them, nor assume the same feelings that the victim suffers and experiences, which is not the same to put yourself in a person’s place and understand what they are going through.
by CEDOC
