Spanish legal expert says Catalonia sentencing case 'well built' A Spanish legal and political expert from the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (Open Catalonia University) describes the sentences handed out against Catalan political leaders over the failed 2017 independence bid as "well built" and neither "hard" nor "soft." Spain's Supreme Court sentenced nine Catalan separatist leaders to heavy jail terms over the failed 2017 independence bid, bringing thousands of angry protesters on to the streets of Barcelona and blocked access to its airport. IMAGES AND SOUNDBITES