María Laura Román Gavilán, 42, a real estate agent for the Century 21 franchise in Paraguay, was convicted on March 25, 2026, for contempt in Caacupé, in the Cordillera Judicial District. The sentence stemmed from repeated failure to comply with a court order requiring the presence of a social worker and a psychologist during visitation with her minor son.
The case had an unusual trajectory: in November 2024, a Trial Court acquitted her, but the Cordillera Court of Appeals overturned the decision due to contradictions and inconsistencies. The defense appealed to the Supreme Court of Justice, whose Criminal Chamber declared the appeal inadmissible. In the second trial, the court concluded that the accused had full knowledge of the imposed measures and chose to disregard them. The fine imposed has already been paid, formally closing the case.
However, this is not Román Gavilán's only court case. In case No. 3948/2021, also in Caacupé, another Trial Court declared her a perpetrator of domestic violence, considering proven conduct that was typical and unlawful under the Paraguayan Penal Code. Despite this, the court acquitted her by applying Article 23 of the Penal Code, an exceptional provision that exempts punishment when the accused acts under "severe disturbance of consciousness," preventing them from understanding the unlawfulness of the act or acting in accordance with that understanding. The use of this mechanism in cases of intrafamily violence is rare and generates legal debate, as it recognizes the unlawful act but excludes criminal liability.
Both cases involve court decisions aimed at protecting a minor. In the contempt sentence, the judges emphasized that the conditions violated were intended to safeguard the child's rights and integrity during visits. In the earlier case, the court considered violent conduct within the family to be proven.
Another notable element is the role of lawyer Magdalena Narváez, who defended Román Gavilán in both cases. Narváez served as a Trial Judge in Caacupé until February 2020, when she resigned amid questions from the Jury for the Prosecution of Magistrates (JEM). The resignation was later annulled by a Court of Appeals due to alleged procedural flaws, and the court forwarded the records to the JEM. After leaving the judiciary, Narváez joined the office of former Supreme Court Minister Miguel Óscar Bajac, who was sentenced in August 2023 to three years in prison for aggravated bribery, for soliciting a $50,000 bribe to favor a party in a private lawsuit. The connection gains relevance because Narváez, as a magistrate, was a colleague of some judges who handled the domestic violence case against her current client, reigniting focus on internal connections within the Cordillera judicial system.