The second chamber of Spain's Supreme Court hopes to have the verdict ready in the case of the Catalan pro-independence leaders before 16th October. Why that date? Because that's when Jordi Sànchez and Jordi Cuixart will hit two years in provisional detention, the basic legal limit. This is the suggestion today from court sources. They add that the verdict, which the judges have worked on through the summer, is in an "advanced" state, despite its enormous complexity.
The presidents of ANC and Òmnium Cultural were the first pro-independence leaders sent to prison in 2017, on 16th October. The law states that original provisional detention can last two years, although this can be extended up to another two years if a judge sees fit. Nonetheless, the court hopes to avoid having to do that. Two days earlier, 14th October, the Court of Justice of the European Union will hold a hearing in Oriol Junqueras's case.
The sources say the sentence from Madrid might not be approved unanimously by the chamber's seven judges, that some might submit dissenting opinions. They are working on the verdict split into topic blocks. Nor has the court decided whether there should be a public reading of the verdict. They say they don't see this as being "logical", because it will be considerable to read in its entirety and very complex for a shorter reading.