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Accuses authorities of "extortion" and intimidation for refusing to approve homosexual adoption BY LifeSiteNews.com  By Matthew Cullinan HoffmanMADRID, February 13, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) - A Spanish judge removed from the bench for refusing to approve a homosexual adoption says that before his trial the prosecutors attempted "extortion" against him, and persecuted him for his Christian beliefs.Judge Fernando Ferrin Calamita says that the prosecutor’s office repeatedly contacted him through third parties, suggesting danger to his family, as well as offering to prevent his conviction if he sent a payment to the attorney for the lesbians seeking the adoption.Ferrin Calamita told the Spanish pro-family website HazteOir that he suffered "an attempt at extortion transmitted by no less than the Superior Prosecutor of the Autonomous Community [of Murcia], in summary that I should be ‘prudent’, that I should consider the fact I’m the father of a numerous family, that I shouldn’t be ‘radical’, that it was a struggle of David against Goliath, that I was going to end up ‘losing’.""In short, if I were to send a statement to a fax number that would be given to me, promising to leave Murcia or change my jurisdiction, they would absolve me, and if not, they would convict me, independently of whether or not I was innocent," he said, "but they would not tolerate a ‘disobedient’ or ‘rebellious’ judge.""I didn’t accept, or pay money to Mazon Costa, the lawyer for the adoptees.  If I had accepted the request for a transfer and paid Mazon Costa, there would not have been a trial, nor, therefore, a conviction."Ferrin Calamita also told HazteOir that his private life was investigated, and that his Christian religious beliefs were used against him."My private life has decisively influenced my condemnation," he said. "Before filing charges my private life was investigated.  Through the internet and other means, they verified that I sent my daughters to a high school that was publicly identified with Opus Dei.  Well, from that they concluded that I was Opus Dei, according to the complaint, a member of the ‘most antiquated’ Church.  And if I had sent my children to the Jesuits, to a high school run by monks?  No comment is necessary." Commenting on the case that brought him to trial, Ferrin Calamita noted, "No one has the right to adopt, neither homosexuals nor heterosexuals.  It is the minor who has the right to be adopted and to grow up safe and happy, physically and psychologically."Judge Ferrin Calamita was convicted of deliberately delaying judgment on a case in which a lesbian sought to adopt her lover’s daughter.  The judge repeatedly requested and was denied a psychological assessment of the likely impact of growing up in a home with two lesbians.  He then sought an opinion from Spain’s Constitutional Court on the constitutionality of same-sex adoption, further delaying judgment on the case.  After being convicted of the charges against him Calamita was removed from the bench for 27 months and fined 6,000 Euros ($8,182).  Following the verdict he announced plans to appeal to the nation’s highest courts.Related Links:HazteOir Interview with Judge Fernando Ferrin Calamita (in Spanish)http://www.hazteoir.org/node/16800Website Supporting Judge Calamita (in Spanish)http://www.juezcalamita.com/Previous LifeSiteNews coverage:Spanish Judge Convicted of "Homophobia" for Not Approving Adoption by Lesbian Partnerhttp://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2009/jan/09010802.htmlDespite Threats and Intimidation from Homosexualist Government, Spanish Judge Stands Firmhttp://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2008/dec/08121701.htmlSpanish Judge Put on Trial for "Obstructing" Homosexual Adoptionhttp://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2008/nov/08112702.htmlSpanish Judge Tells Lesbian Mother to Choose Children or Same-sex Partner, not Bothhttp://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2007/jul/07072406.html http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/spanish-judge-says-government-is-persecuting-him-for-his-christian-faith/

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