The Audiencia Provincial de Valladolid has scheduled the jury trial into the death of Esther López for 2 February 2027. According to the decision announced on 2 September 2026 by the presiding judge of the Tribunal del Jurado the trial is initially scheduled to run for 18 hearings. This was announced by the press office of the Tribunal Superior de Justicia de Castilla y León known.
The jury will be selected at the start of the trial. The court will then hear the case in several blocks, which, according to the current plan, could run until early March. In the scheduling decision, the presiding judge also set out the “hechos justiciables” – the factual and legal questions on which the jury will have to rule after hearing the evidence.
The case concerns Esther López, reported missing in January 2022 in Traspinedo (province of Valladolid), whose body was found in early February 2022. The defendant is Óscar S. M., who is at liberty subject to conditions. The prosecution accuses him of murder with the aggravating circumstance of treachery and provisionally seeks an 18-year prison sentence. The private prosecution also maintains the murder charge and additionally alleges other offences. The defence denies the charges and seeks an acquittal. The presumption of innocence applies until a verdict is reached.
The scheduling follows a period of further investigations in 2026. In April, a previously concealed cavity was discovered in a former home of the accused. The Audiencia Provincial de Valladolid then temporarily sent the case file back to the investigating judge to complete certain items of evidence. After those measures were completed, the case was returned to the court, which has now set the trial timetable.
Under proceedings before a Tribunal del Jurado, the jury decides which facts are considered proven and, consequently, whether the defendant is guilty or not guilty. The court hears the evidence, rules on procedural applications and delivers the judgment on the basis of the jury’s verdict and its legal assessment. Predictions about the outcome would be unfounded at this stage.
With the start date set for 2 February 2027, a trial that has attracted considerable attention in Valladolid and beyond Castilla y León now has a clear timeframe. Changes to the hearing schedule remain possible, for example if the evidence is extensive or the parties make additional applications.
Editor: Mira Cadena (Article created with AI assistance).