Dominican court rejects opposition, continues corruption trial against Jean Alain Rodríguez

The Second Collegiate Court of the National District has rejected an opposition recourse filed by the defense of former Attorney General Jean Alain Rodríguez, ordering the continuation of the corruption trial in which he and 15 others are accused of defrauding the state of over RD$6,000 million Source: listindiario. The court declared the opposition inadmissible, clearing the way for the Public Ministry to present its opening statement, but the defense immediately filed a new request to extinguish the criminal action based on the argument that the process has exceeded the four-year legal limit Source: elcaribedr.

The arguments

The defense, led by lawyer Carlos Balcácer, argues that the case has lasted nearly six years due to delays attributable to the Public Ministry, citing statistics that between 2014 and 2025 Dominican courts granted 22,645 extinction requests versus 2,769 rejections Source: hoydo. They claim the clock started on November 25, 2020, when Rodríguez was barred from leaving the country without a court order Source: elcaribedr. The Public Ministry, represented by prosecutor Wilson Camacho, counters that Rodríguez is deliberately evading trial. "The main accused in this case, Jean Alain Rodríguez, has been looking for ways to flee from the knowledge of the process and the knowledge of the evidence," Camacho stated Source: infobae.

What's next

The court adjourned the hearing until Monday, July 27, at 9:00 AM, when it will hear two hours of arguments from the defense on the extinction request Source: diariolibree. The prosecution insists no legal grounds exist to modify the court's stance and expects the trial to proceed Source: eldiado.