Mr. Mas is on trial for holding the vote even though it was declared illegal by the Spanish courts. Mr. Mas faces two separate charges, of disobedience and breach of trust. In his opening remarks on Monday, Mr. Mas told the court that he assumed full responsibility for the ballot. “There was no intention to commit any crime, nor to disobey anybody,” Mr. Mas said. Carles Puigdemont, who succeeded Mr. Mas as president of the Generalitat of Catalonia, criticized officials in Madrid for trying to punish Mr. Mas.

Source: New York Times February 06, 2017 16:39 UTC