The expert's voice: will Miquel Roldán be able to step away from teaching?

PalmThe Council of Ministers has approved the reform of the Law for the Comprehensive Protection of Children and Adolescents against Violence (Lopivi) to, among other measures, prevent teachers convicted of crimes related to minors from practicing. This decision has had a special echo in the Balearic Islands following the case of Miquel Roldán, a professional convicted to one year in prison for harassing a former student, whose return to practice has caused families from CEIP Son Pisà and CEIP Maria Antònia Salvà to go on strike to reject his presence in a classroom with children. However, will this legislative modification really affect him?

We speak with the Chair of Criminal Law at the UIB, Eduard Ramon, who analyzes it from a legal point of view. “The idea is that any reform after the events, if it is detrimental to the person, cannot be applied. On the other hand, if it is beneficial, it can have retroactive effects,” he explains, in addition to recalling one of the basic principles of criminal law.

Constitutional law

The Spanish Constitution precisely establishes that unfavorable laws cannot be applied retroactively, although there are exceptions and nuances depending on the type of norm and the specific context. “If the change made is not strictly a criminal law and, for example, it is established as a requirement to access teaching not to have a criminal record, it can be analyzed in another way. There are many nuances, because the law works like this”, assures the jurist.

However, the expert emphasizes that the exact wording of the regulation cannot be fully assessed until the definitive text is made public and how it applies in each specific case can be studied. Everything that can be done now are speculative interpretations.