When the car takes the first bend, the conversation begins: “And now the guard will get his sentence reduced, right?”. Driving forces you to keep your eyes on the road and your hands on the wheel, but it allows you to listen. This has turned car journeys into an oasis of attention: conversations, some even long, can be held without mobile phone interruption. If the co-driver wants, it’s the moment to address any thorny issue. There are even legends about marriage proposals taking advantage of the opponent’s weakness, who couldn’t pretend not to notice under the pretext of replying to a WhatsApp message.
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The thorny issue of the Olot guard’s transition to a woman has been covered by the press. Joan Vila Dilmé, who killed 11 elderly people (nine women and two men) between 2009 and 2010, is now called Aura and has been relocated to the women’s module of Puig de les Basses prison, in Figueres (Girona). She has undergone hormonal treatment and is on a waiting list for surgery. Does the change imply any kind of prison benefit? No. Will she achieve a reduction in sentence with it? No. Of the 127 years to which she was sentenced, with 40 to be served, she still has more than 20 ahead of her. Furthermore, all the permits she has requested have always been denied.
A second later, the co-driver brings up another equally thorny piece of news: “Now the most dangerous killer in Spain, who has been released from prison in Lleida, is going to kill again?”. The guy, in his twenties, doesn’t read media. All his information comes from what he hears (sometimes reads) on social media. Media coverage of Dino Marcelo Miller’s release has been even more intense than that of the guard. In 1998, he killed two people and injured a third, who later died. After more than 20 years in prison, he was released in 2020 without being rehabilitated, robbed two supermarkets, and returned to prison. After his new release, the Mossos have the difficult mission of controlling him without violating his fundamental rights, because he is now a free person.
Does justice work? What do we do with un-rehabilitated prisoners? The question has hovered over news reports, talk shows, and media analyst tables. And answers have been sought from lawyers, specialized journalists, and even psychologists to try to understand the loopholes that the system sometimes creates. The conclusion can be summarized as the Penal Code would have allowed the application of permanent revisable prison, and supervised release measures after the completion of the sentence. And a second idea: the Spanish system seeks reintegration, but there are institutionalized prisoners who know no other life than the one they lead behind bars.
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But any issue, especially if it is complex and delicate, takes on a life of its own on social media, where Joan Vila (now Aura) is only seeking to obtain prison benefits and intimidate women. “Anyone with two functional neurons knew this was going to be a loophole to abuse women and the law…”, someone tweets. And, always according to social media, Dino Marcelo Miller wants to start killing as soon as he hits the street with the system’s approval, and with pay included. “He will enjoy freedom and public aid, and will be able to destroy another family whenever he pleases,” messages another X user.
The guy in his twenties could subscribe to those tweets. “No; it’s what I’ve seen on TikTok,” he defends himself against any objection. He too has gorged himself on fear without context or nuance. One reel and one tweet after another, with no filters other than the author’s prejudices. That’s why he admits he’s indignant. He keeps quiet that he’s probably also scared. But he doesn’t know that, above all, he is misinformed.
