Ombudsman requests a review of the constitutionality of article 176-C of the Penal Code, which establishes the crime of acts contrary to sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression

The Ombudsman has submitted a request to the Constitutional Court for a declaration of unconstitutionality, with general binding force, of article 176-C of the Penal Code, which establishes the crime of ‘acts contrary to sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression’.

The petition argues that this rule, added by Article 4 of Law 15/2024 of 29 January, does not comply with the constitutional requirements of determinability imposed in criminal matters by the principle of typicality (Article 29 of the Constitution). At issue is, in particular, the degree of indeterminacy of the concepts that define the prohibited conduct and the obscurity regarding the role of the consent of those targeted.

The request for a constitutional review also extends, consequently, to the rules contained in articles 69-B, 69-C and 177 of the Penal Code, as amended by Law 15/2024, which establish accessory penalties and cases of aggravation of the penalty for this new crime.

To read the full petition, click here [in Portuguese only].