Baltasar Garzón of Spain Testifies at His Own Trial MADRID - Baltasar Garzón, a high-profile Spanish judge, took the stand Tuesday to defend his decision to investigate atrocities committed during the Spanish Civil War, insisting it had been driven by his crusade against human rights violations rather than by political ideology. Testifying at his own trial in Madrid, Judge Garzón told the seven judges of the Spanish Supreme Court that "I did what I thought I had to do, beyond any question of ideology." He added: "There were here hundreds of thousands of victims who had not received the attention that was within their rights." The trial was instigated by far-right groups that accused him of knowingly exceeding his legal remit - specifically contravening a 1977 general amnesty that covered crimes perpetrated during the civil war. On Tuesday, however, a defiant Judge Garzón told the court that the amnesty law covered facts or crimes of a political nature, while human rights abuses are "a permanent crime" that transcends politics and cannot be tied to any amnesty law. At issue is his investigation into tens of thousands of deaths and disappearances. A ruling is expected in two weeks. The trial has generated international criticism, with Amnesty International describing it as "a threat to human rights and judicial independence." It is only one of three separate trials against the prosecuting judge, who gained global fame for his cross-border pursuit of leaders like Augusto Pinochet of Chile. Judge Garzón had also spearheaded Spain's fight against political corruption, and terrorism by the Basque separatist group ETA. If found guilty, Judge Garzón, 56, could be suspended from his job for as long as 20 years, a punishment that could effectively end his career. Judge Garzón is also being tried on charges that he ordered illegal eavesdropping as part of a corruption investigation, and in a separate case about financing from Santander, a leading Spanish bank. By starting the investigation in 2008 and tackling the extremely sensitive issue of how Spain should come to terms with its past, Judge Garzón cemented his reputation as an ambitious judge and as one of Spain's most contentious personalities. In recent days, including Tuesday, his supporters have rallied in Madrid to demand an end to the trial. Sitting at a small wooden table, Judge Garzón testified for about 90 minutes, after the Supreme Court rejected a request by his lawyer to drop the charges. The defense attorney had argued for dismissal on the grounds that the judge who indicted Judge Gárzon had helped one of the far-right groups file the suit.