The Criminal Law department of Vosseler Abogados , led by lawyer Daniel Salvador , representing the family of the 16-year-old under investigation for the tragic death of a young man in Castelldefels , will request the acquittal of their client at the preliminary conciliation hearing scheduled for next Tuesday, June 30, arguing that the minor's actions fall strictly within the context of legitimate self-defense.
Vosseler Abogados clarifies information about the minor involved in a homicide
The defense strategy is based on the minor's innocence . It argues that the three requirements of the Penal Code for exemption from criminal responsibility are met: a prior unlawful attack, the rational necessity of the means used to repel it , and the absence of provocation on the part of the accused.
Previous and proven physical aggression
The events date back to the early morning of July 18, 2025. After a verbal argument broke out during a ride on the NitBus N16 bus line (which connects Barcelona with Castelldefels), those involved got off the vehicle. It was at the bus stop where the victim and his companion waited for the minor to continue the confrontation.
At that moment, both young men began to physically assault the minor , delivering a series of blows that made him back down and fall to the ground, leaving him in a situation of total defenselessness.
This sequence of events is not mere conjecture: it is fully supported by eyewitnesses and has been partially recorded in the security camera footage of the NitBus, which has already been incorporated into the legal case.
Fortuitous outcome
Daniel Salvador, head of the Criminal Law department at Vosseler Abogados, is emphatic on this point: “There was no intent to kill. When he was on the ground, and with the sole aim of defending his physical integrity and pushing away the aggressors, the minor used a small corkscrew , or bottle opener, that he had brought with him from the family restaurant.”
The defense emphasizes a key fact for understanding the lack of intent: the minor aimed the object at a non-vital area of the body, specifically the leg. The subsequent fatal outcome occurred in the hospital due to hemorrhagic shock, as the wound accidentally affected a major vascular structure in the back of the knee.
“This tragic outcome was accidental and unintentional . It is impossible for a minor under 16 to foresee that an injury in that area could cause death,” the lawyer stated.
Voluntary surrender and collaboration
Following the incident, and before learning the full extent of what had happened, the boy traveled to Turkey (his family's country of origin). This family trip had already been planned . It was there that he learned of the victim's death.
Far from evading justice, and after receiving legal advice from Vosseler Abogados in constant communication with his parents, the young man voluntarily returned to Spain. Thus, last January he surrendered to the judicial authorities.
Currently, the young man is under a precautionary measure of detention in a juvenile center (according to Article 28 of the Organic Law on the Criminal Responsibility of Minors ). However, his lawyer, Daniel Salvador, maintains that the legal requirements for maintaining this measure are not met. Specifically, the minor has no prior criminal record, poses no danger, and there is no risk of flight or destruction of evidence.
Insurmountable fear or manslaughter
Although the main objective of Vosseler Abogados is the free acquittal For self-defense, the legal team has proposed subsidiary lines in its technical defense strategy:
La Exculpatory de insurmountable fear, given the situation of being outnumbered and attacked on the ground.
Alternatively, the facts can be classified as a less serious manslaughter by negligence , since there is a completely fortuitous and unforeseeable causal link in the injury.
The hearing on June 30 will be key to determining the course of this juvenile criminal proceedings, where proportionality, the context of the aggression and the lack of intent will be the pillars of Vosseler Abogados' defense.
If you need advice on juvenile criminal law or want to learn more about how self-defense works in the penal code, you can contact our team of specialist lawyers.
