What retaliation can the courts take against Edmundo González if he does not appear at his second summons to the Prosecutor’s Office?

For this Monday, at 10:00 am (local time), he was summoned Edmundo Gonzalez in order to render statements before the Prosecutor’s Officeat the headquarters of the Public Ministry, in Caracas. However, the opposition assured on Sunday night that He made statements to the Venezuelans, “who are the guarantors of popular sovereignty.”

“Please appear before this representation of the Public Prosecutor’s Office on August 26, 2024 at 10:00 a.m., in order to give an interview in relation to the facts that this office is investigating related to the publication and maintenance of the website https://resultadosconvzla.com,” says the summons that was disseminated by the Prosecutor’s Office through its Instagram account. The Venezuelan government no longer uses X because it is blocked by Chavismo itself.

After the time of the summons, Gonzalez did not go to the Prosecutor’s Office, which ordered a second summons for this Tuesday, August 27.

Tarek William Saab, attorney general of Venezuela. AFP Photo

González did not attend the summons issued by the Supreme Court of Justice for a contentious appeal filed by Nicolás Maduro, the text of which is not known.

When he did not appear, the president of the Supreme Court ordered the Attorney General, Tarek William Saab, to continue the investigations against González and other opponents for the crimes of usurpation of functions and forgery of documents.

Saab immediately responded, demonstrating the lack of independence of powers.

González insisted on asking Nicolás Maduro to acknowledge his defeat and move towards a transition. “Peace is in the minutes,” he said.

What would be the consequences for Edmundo González if he did not go to the Prosecutor’s Office?

“The Public Prosecutor’s Office intends to subject me to an interview without specifying the condition under which I am expected to appear and pre-qualifying crimes that were not committed. The Attorney General of the Republic has repeatedly behaved like a political accuser, condemns in advance and now promotes a summons without guarantees of independence and due process,” González denounced.

If we take into account the explanation of the jurists and start from the fact that “this sentence (that of the TSJ) is null, that means that the sentence does not exist, and if the sentence is null then there is no reason to abide by it either,” he told THE TIME Juan Carlos Apitz, dean of the Faculty of Legal Sciences of the Central University of Venezuela.

Then there would be no consequences for Gonzalez.

However, knowing that the rule of law in Venezuela is practically non-existent and that the powers are handled by Maduro himself, the scenario is different.

By not appearing before the prosecutor, “in principle, González can be declared contumacious, which is the conduct of rebellion of an investigated, accused or charged person or of not cooperating with the investigation,” he says. THE TIME a jurist who preferred to remain anonymous for fear of reprisals.

The lawyer adds that another aspect to consider is that the subpoena does not say what the ongoing investigation is, and “this leaves him in a state of defenselessness because neither he nor his lawyers know why they are calling him. If he does not appear, what the Prosecutor’s Office can do is issue an arrest warrant.”