The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine has registered two drafts of the Law on Amendments to the Criminal Procedure Code on the Improvement of Pretrial Investigations under Martial Law (Reg. No. 7370 dated 05/11/2022 and No. 7370-1 dated 05/22/2022).
The purpose of adopting the draft laws is to ensure the efficiency and effectiveness of the investigation of crimes under martial law, especially in the areas of active hostilities or territories as close as possible to them.
The above-mentioned draft laws propose, in particular, changes to be made regarding the procedure for issuing a corpse, examining a person, detaining a person, selecting or extending the term of detention.
At the request of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Law Enforcement, NAAU analyzed and prepared remarks .
The Profile Committee on Criminal Law and Procedure came to the conclusion that the extension of a person's term of detention for 120 days, in the event that the court cannot consider the issue of extending the term of detention, is excessive. The issue of changing territorial jurisdiction can be resolved in 2 months. Positions on the powers of prosecutors and investigating judges during the special regime of pre-trial proceedings under martial law are also expressed. The draft laws stipulate that decisions made by the prosecutor are notified to the prosecutor of the highest level as soon as possible, as well as to the court with copies of the relevant documents no later than 10 days. In this matter, the Committee clarifies that the head of the higher-level prosecutor's office should be notified. In addition, the powers of the investigating judge, the court should be adjusted based on the results of consideration of reports.
In this regard, NAAU recommends finalizing drafts of Laws No. 7370 and No. 7370-1, taking into account the comments and suggestions submitted to the VRU Committee on Law Enforcement Activities.
The text and photos were prepared by the NAAU committee coordinator team