Buenos Aires, Argentine – An Argentine appeals court has upheld the indictment of former President Alberto Fernández (2019–2023) on gender-based violence charges, advancing a landmark case that could see the ex-head of state stand trial for the alleged abuse of his former partner, Fabiola Yáñez.
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The decision, issued Tuesday by the National Criminal and Correctional Appeals Court, confirms a February 17 ruling by Federal Judge Julián Ercolini, which accuses Fernández of committing both physical and psychological abuse against Yáñez between 2016 and August 2024 — a relationship the court described as shaped by a “notorious power imbalance.”
Judges Cite “Marked Power Asymmetry” and Pattern of Abuse
The majority decision by Judges Martín Irurzun and Eduardo Farah, with a dissent from Judge Roberto Boico, affirms that the alleged abuse occurred within a context of gender-based violence, in which Fernández is said to have exploited Yáñez’s vulnerability during their relationship.
The court cited a “marked power imbalance, isolation, psychological abuse, and repeated physical aggression,” noting that several incidents allegedly took place at the presidential residence under conditions of forced isolation.
Judge Farah dismissed the defense’s claim that the charges lacked clarity, stating the allegations were “meticulously described” from the beginning of the relationship to the formal complaint filed in 2024.
Defense Denies Abuse, Asserts Counterclaim
Fernández’s legal counsel, Silvina Carreira, has appealed the indictment, arguing that the former president was not the abuser but rather suffered mistreatment himself at the hands of Yáñez. The court, however, dismissed this claim and upheld charges including minor and serious injuries, coercive threats, and abuse of power — all aggravated by the intimate relationship between the two.
The ruling emphasized that Fernández’s status as both President and a public figure with symbolic authority intensified the imbalance of power, stating he was “not only the President of the Nation, but also a public actor with symbolic power.”
A Legal and Political First
This marks the first time in Argentine history that a sitting or former head of state has been criminally indicted for gender-based violence. If convicted, Fernández faces a potential prison sentence of 3 to 18 years.
The indictment details a sustained pattern of verbal humiliation, threats, guilt manipulation, and physical assault across multiple years — raising broader questions about accountability at the highest levels of government.
With the indictment now upheld, Fernández is just one step away from a public oral trial that could set a significant precedent in Latin American political and judicial history.
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