The denaturalization of pretrial detention in Bolivia: critical analysis of the structural crisis, the violation of the principle of exceptionality and the unconventionality of judicial practice (2019-2025)

Objective: to analyze the denaturalization of pretrial detention in Bolivia between 2019 and 2025 by contrasting the constitutional and Inter-American framework with the available evidence on its application. Method: a descriptive-analytical documentary study with a mixed approach, combining the review of legislation, Inter-American case law and scholarly literature with the analysis of official prison statistics and hearing-monitoring reports. Results: as of September 2025, 18,269 of 33,181 persons deprived of liberty (55.1%) had not been sentenced. The share fell from 62.7% in December 2023, yet the absolute figure remained near 18,000 while the prison population grew 81% relative to 2018. In a sample of 173 pretrial hearings monitored by Fundación Construir, 64% were suspended; in the same monitoring, 84% of flight-risk claims and 79% of obstruction-risk claims were made without supporting evidence. Conclusion: the gap between law and practice is not explained by a regulatory vacuum, since Law No. 1173 already places the burden of proof on the prosecution, but by deficits in information, case management and judicial reasoning. Pretrial services, fewer hearing suspensions and insulation of precautionary decisions from external pressure are reform lines that require empirical evaluation.