DNA as ‘ready-made evidence’: An analysis of Portuguese judges’ views

The introduction of biological evidence in judicial settings raises particular modes of entanglement between professional cultures and perceptions of the probative value of evidence. When DNA evidence reaches court, it also challenges the perceived margins of critical assessment of the work and understandings of previous links in the chain of custody, like the criminal police, forensic experts and the public prosecution services. Given the apparent neutrality of judicial institutions, how do Portuguese judges perceive and value biological evidence? And how do judges see their articulation with other operators of the criminal justice system? An analysis of 14 interviews carried out with Portuguese judges reveals the challenges in the evaluation of biological evidence, which is characterised as a ‘safe haven’, grounded as it is on an indisputable scientific authority. The suggestion of the presence of a cultural rift emerges, which, taken with the work of other epistemic cultures, leads to biological evidence being seen as ‘ready-made evidence’ on its arrival in court, thus limiting the role of judges in its appraisal.

CERTAIN ISSUES OF FAMILIARIZATION WITH THE MATERIALS OF THE CRIMINAL CASE AT THE END OF THE PRELIMINARY INVESTIGATION

Familiarization with the materials of the criminal case at the end of the preliminary investigation affects the timeliness and quality of criminal proceedings in the court and adoption of a procedural decision, as well as the observance of the procedural period of criminal proceedings and ensuring the rights of participants in the parties, and therefore there is a need to resolve problems during its conduct. The authors uphold the position that it is necessary to provide for the mandatory participation of the legal representative of the minor victim and the accused in familiarization with the materials of the criminal case in order to carry out their defense, as well as the need to rehabilitate the victim after the crime committed against him. It is proposed to give the prosecutor the power to return the criminal case to the investigator if he considers it necessary to satisfy the applications. This proposal is aimed at ensuring the quality of support for public prosecution. A proposal to grant the parties the right to petition the investigator to declare the evidence in the case inadmissible and not to include it in the indictment is substantiated. The proposed procedure will exclude disputes that are not related to the circumstances of the commission of the crime in court, will improve the quality of criminal proceedings.

On violation of the logic of the legal mechanism of bringing to justice for beatings and additional measures for their prevention

The relevance of the research is determined by a legal gap in the current legislation, which lies in the fact that when bringing a person who has committed a crime under Article 116.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation repeatedly in relation to the same person to responsibility, the state of the criminal record of this criminal is not taken into account. In this case, a person who has unexpunged or outstanding convictions, when committing battery for the third time, according to common sense, should be brought to criminal responsibility, and not to administrative responsibility, as is currently the case. In order to eliminate this conflict, the authors propose to include part 2 of Art. 1161 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, which provides for the liability of a person who has an unexpunged or outstanding conviction in relation to the same person. At the same time, the authors consider it necessary to include a group of criminal cases considered as cases of public prosecution to part 2 of Art. 1161 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. The authors also see an urgent problem of the need to improve the effectiveness of the prevention of domestic violence through the inclusion of new legal means in legislation and law enforcement practice. Attempts to implement the norms of international acts providing for legal means of preventing domestic violence in the Russian Federation, as well as the study of foreign experience on this issue, according to the authors, looks ambiguous and is debatable. In particular, the issue of introducing protective orders and orders as administrative and legal means of preventing administrative offenses through the adoption of the federal law «On the Prevention of Domestic Violence in the Russian Federation» is being considered. According to the authors, taking into account the foreign practice, there are sufficient grounds to believe that protective prescriptions and some other means will not be able to confirm their effectiveness in Russia.

The role of public prosecutors in jury trials: the experience of the Russian Federation and the People’s Republic of China

The article discusses the development of jury trials in Russia and China, the results of the work of the state prosecution in Russian jury trials on the basis of data from form No. 1 of the statistical reporting of the Judicial Department at the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation over the past decade. The author provides statistical indicators confi rming the growing popularity of jury trials in Russia. The results of the return of criminal cases by the courts to the prosecutor in accordance with Art. 237 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation, as indicators of the effectiveness of the prosecutor’s work in courtare discussed.The article touches upon the problem of a stable increase in the number of acquitted persons in jury trials over the past 10 years. The ways of solving the current situation within the framework of the development of the system of jurors and the institution of public prosecution in the Russian Federation are proposed, which may be an experience for China.

Odmowa przyznania świadczenia motywacyjnego w sytuacji wszczęcia postępowania karnego przeciwko funkcjonariuszowi Policji

On October 1st 2020, a new institution was introduced to the Act on the Police – the incentive benefit. It is intended by the legislature to keep officers with at least 25 years active service. Awarding this benefit depends on the period of service held by the officer. The regulation relating to the incentive benefit also provides for a number of negative premises, the materialization of which results in the refusal to grant the benefit. This article is entirely devoted to the issue related to the refusal to grant an incentive benefit in the cause of initiating criminal proceedings against a Police officer. It was therefore necessary to indicate at what point the stage of criminal proceedings changes from in rem to ad personam, because this results in initiating them against a specific person. The change in the stage of criminal proceedings depends on the offence it concerns. If it is a public prosecution offense, the change takes place in connection with the presentation of charges to the specific person. However, in the context of Art. 120a (7) (2) Act on the Police, the initiation of criminal proceedings against a specific person should be equated with the very fact of drawing up a decision on the presentation of charges. However, it is different in the situation specified in Art. 55 § 1 of The Code of Criminal Procedure, or in proceedings in cases prosecuted by private prosecution. The mere submitting of a subsidiary indictment, private indictment or complaint results in the initiation of proceedings against a specific person, provided that they have been submitted effectively. It was also emphasized that the administrative authority is bound by decisions undertaken in the criminal proceedings and cannot make any independent determinations in this regard, as it cannot interfere with the competences reserved to another entity.

Separate aspects of the prosecutor's preparation for presentation of the state accusations in the court

The article examines aspects of preparation for the presentation prosecutor’s of public prosecution in criminal courts in the Republic of Moldova. The analysis of the preliminary preparation for the presentation of the public prosecution in the courts is given. Study of the materials of the criminal case, regulatory legal acts, development of a preliminary position on a criminal case, development of a plan for participation in the trial, elements of the preparation of the prosecutor for the effective support of the public prosecution. The prosecutor’s analysis of the materials of the criminal case as the basis for high-quality support of the state prosecution. Forecasting possible situations at the stage of pre-trial preparation, the use of certain tactical techniques for studying the case materials; study of normative materials and judicial practice in relation to a specific category of cases; generalization and analysis of the materials of the criminal case; forecasting various situations that may arise during the court session; a set of tactics used to solve them; build versions of the prosecution; comprehensive planning of activities to maintain public prosecution. To adequately perceive what is happening in the trial, to competently and timely respond to the behavior of the participants in the process, to investigate and collect evidence that incriminates the defendant in the commission of a crime.

The Urgency of Public Prosecution Service of The Republic of Indonesia In The Settlement of Replacement Money In Criminal Acts of Corruption Based on Law Number 3 of 1971

In ensnaring the corruptors, not from the upstream, but from the downstream, namely by tracing where the flow of corruption funds ends up. It must be understood that a corruptor who then drains the proceeds of corruption means that he has committed two crimes at once. Therefore, the follow the money method is more effective than the follow The Suspect method, namely the handling of criminal acts that prioritize the perpetrators of crimes. With the follow the money approach, activities to hide or disguise the proceeds of corruption can be prevented and eradicated. However, this must still be regulated so that its implementation can be carried out in a concrete manner so that there is no legal vacuum in the implementation of its execution by the Indonesian Prosecutor's Office. The data collection technique in this research is using the library research method. While the analysis technique carried out on the legal materials that have been collected by the author will be done deductively. The results of this study indicate that the regulation of replacement money in criminal acts of corruption is contained in Law Number 3 of 1971 and has been revoked and amended by Law Number 20 of 2001 jo. so that in this case, there is an important role by the Attorney General's Office of the Republic of Indonesia, finally the Attorney General's Office issued Perja Number PER-020/A/JA/07/2014 and then upgraded to Perja Number 19 of 2020 and followed up with a Circular Letter of the Deputy Attorney General for Civil and Administrative Countries with Number SE-001/G/Gs/03/2021 dated March 26, 2021.

On the Role of the Prosecutor in Initiating a Criminal Case and Initiating Criminal Prosecution

The paper shows that the consolidation of the functions of the prosecutor’s office of the Russian Federation at the constitutional level leads to the need to return to the question of the effectiveness and sufficiency of the prosecutor’s powers to independently initiate a criminal case, initiate criminal prosecution, and bring charges. The modern models of granting various subjects the authority to initiate and carry out criminal prosecution, to bring charges in criminal procedural comparative studies are identified and analyzed. They are: 1) a system of public prosecution, or a monocratic model, in which criminal prosecution is initiated exclusively by the decision of state bodies with appropriate special competence, primarily the prosecutor’s office (prosecutor’s monopoly); 2) an ex officio prosecution system, or a polycratic model, when the subject of criminal prosecution is any of the state bodies authorized to conduct proceedings in a case, there is no monopoly of one state body or official to initiate criminal prosecution; 3) a private prosecution system, when the subject of criminal prosecution is either the victim or his legal successors; 4) a “people’s” system charges, in which any private person has the right to initiate criminal prosecution, regardless of whether he is a victim or not. The conclusion is substantiated that Russia belongs to the states in which the polycratic ex officio model is combined with private prosecution in certain categories of cases, while, unlike most other states, the prosecutor is not among the officials authorized to initiate criminal proceedings and/or criminal prosecution. It is shown that the lack of powers of the prosecutor in pre-trial proceedings hinders the achievement of the purpose of criminal proceedings. It is concluded that it is necessary to return to the prosecutor the authority to initiate a criminal case independently.

OPTIMIZATION OF PROSECUTORIAL SUPERVISION IN THE CONTEXT OF DIGITALIZATION OF CRIMINAL PROCEDURE

The paper discusses the possibilities of digitalization of criminal procedure and its importance for optimizing prosecutorial supervision, including high-tech supervision. The development of digital technologies urgently requires not only legal changes, but also the rational use of artificial intelligence in criminal proceedings. Purpose: to determine the limits of the use of artificial intelligence in criminal proceedings and, in particular, prosecutorial supervision. Methods: the author uses empirical methods of comparison and description; theoretical methods of formal and dialectical logic. A special scientific legal-technical method is also applied. Results: The prosecutor’s access to the materials of the criminal case will make it possible to ensure the continuity of prosecutorial supervision and will enhance its efficiency. The use of software will be a factor preventing the gathering of evidence in violation of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation. It is proposed to use special methods of supporting public prosecution in specific types of criminal cases in the development of an artificial intelligence program. Digital technologies can be used to analyze crimes, its causes and conditions, and to develop effective means of preventing it when the prosecutor exercises the function of coordinating the activities of law enforcement agencies in combating crime.

Konstytucyjne aspekty procesu karnego w działalności Rzecznika Praw Obywatelskich

The changes in the broadly conceived criminal procedure which were introduced in recent years refer to the problems which are crucial from the perspective of the protection of human rights, such as the scope of the authority of the services due to operational control which is conducted secretly, the model of the functioning of the public prosecution service or the unlawful acquiring of evidence in a criminal procedure. The evaluation of these changes, conducted by the Ombudsman from the point of view of the constitutional standards of the protection of the rights of the individual is not positive. The new regulations reduce the quality of these standards and they do not contain sufficient guarantees of protection against the arbitrariness of the activities engaged in these terms by the organs of public authority. This phenomenon imposes a particular duty on the courts – which hear criminal cases – to see that the final decision in a criminal case respects the universal standards of the protection of human rights.