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The Supreme Court decided in a 3-2 split ruling to partially host the request of the Public Ministry to access emails from authorities of the Ministry of Health (Minsal) regarding the management of the pandemic.
The Second Chamber of the Highest Court determined that the Prosecutor’s Office may access these messages, but with certain limitations.
“The controversy is resolved, declaring that it is appropriate to maintain the entry and registration diligence with the seizure of emails, linked only to the verification of the criminal acts reported, with the exception of the communications detailed in letters a) and b) of section 6 above, which, because they are included in the situation contemplated in paragraph 2 of article 209 of the Criminal Procedure Code, are excluded from the diligence ordered by the judiciary, ”said the Supreme Court ruling.
The exceptions mentioned in the letter are related to the communications regarding “To the acquisition of essential and strategic implements and supplies to face the pandemic” and to those that are related to the “allocation of military and police troops and resources to strategic and logistical tasks related to COVID-19”.
In the brief, the arguments of the members of the Second Chamber of the Supreme Court were established.
For example, attorney María Cristina Gajardo, who supported the delivery of communications with certain limitations, stated that “National security must be understood in its new dimension, it cannot be equated only with military power or associated with states of war”. And that “it is precisely from this new dimension of national security that the norm contained in article 209 of the Criminal Procedure Code must be understood, in which the sub-lite decision has influenced, and that demands to adequately protect the subjective rights of citizens and of their authorities in the exercise of their investiture ”.
Meanwhile, the opinion of the ministers was also revealed Haroldo Brito and Jorge Dahm Who They were about to deliver all the information required by the Public Ministry, without restrictions.
“It is clear that the opponent only supported his claim in the norm that establishes the incident, that is, he limited himself to sustaining the impact on national security, which consisted in that information related to the acquisition of essential and strategic supplies and implements would be known to execute the health policy planned to combat the pandemic that has reached the country. The same effect would produce access relative to the displacement of military troops that provide support in various tasks, without providing background information capable of convincing that knowledge of what to avoid would harm national security”, Both magistrates affirmed.
The request for access to information had been made by the Central North Regional Prosecutor, Xavier Armendáriz, who He requested access to the e-mails of the former Minister of Health, Jaime Mañalich, of his then chief of staff, Itziar Linazasoro and, in addition, of the Undersecretariat of Public Health, Paula Daza.
This, in the frame since criminal investigation promoted by the mayor of Recoleta, Daniel Jadue, for the alleged crimes of reckless dissemination of pathogenic germs; homicide and falsification of public document, amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The dispute had reached the Supreme after the Minister of Health, Enrique Paris, refuse to deliver the requested emails through a seizure procedure, arguing that these conversations posed an alleged risk to “national security”, among other reasons that he put forward.
Then, the High Court requested a report from Paris for what justify your decision.
Further, the defenses of President Sebastián Piñera, from Mañalich and de Daza – despite the fact that the Supreme Court did not request it – sent a letter to the highest court – stating that access to the Minsal post office was an “unfounded” procedure and that the support on which the Prosecutor’s Office relied for said procedure “are mere speculations.”
