Prosecutors are endowed with very impressive powers. When the courts consider criminal cases, the participation of the prosecutor is an important condition necessary to ensure the rule of law and protect the rights of citizens. What are the main tasks of the public prosecutor in the process of administering justice, everyone can learn from this article.
What does the law on prosecution say
According to the provisions of the federal law "On the Prosecutor's Office of the Russian Federation" and the norms of the criminal procedure law, the participation of the prosecutor in the consideration of criminal cases by the courts, as well as civil, administrative, arbitration and other cases, pursues the supervision of the legality of decisions, sentences or decisions adopted by the court. This official has the right to appeal these acts if they do not comply with the principles of legality and the Constitution of the Russian Federation.
A prosecutor is a full-fledged participant in the proceedings of any legal sphere. Carrying out his direct duties, he protects human rights and freedoms, protects the interests of society and the state, ensures and strengthens unity, the rule of law. A prosecutor in a criminal or any other proceeding court achieves these goals by issuing regulatory documents based on the powers granted by law. These include:
- participation in the consideration of cases in the court;
- criminal prosecution in the process of administering justice;
- acting as a public prosecutor;
- appeal to the court with an application for entry into the process at any stage, if there is a need to protect the interests of participants in a criminal case;
- appeal of any illegal or unreasonable court decision or decision, regardless of whether the regulatory act of justice has come into legal force or not;
- a request for a claim from the court of any level of criminal proceedings, the decision on which is already in force.
Competence of the Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation
This position is the highest in the system of Russian oversight bodies and prosecutors. The Prosecutor General has the right to participate in meetings of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation. In addition, he may initiate appeals to the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation, necessary for the restoration of violated rights and freedoms of citizens, require clarifications on specific criminal proceedings.
It is not advisable to list all the powers of the prosecutor when participating in the consideration of criminal cases by the courts, since all of them are indicated in the Federal Law "On the Prosecutor's Office of the Russian Federation" and the Code of Criminal Procedure. It also indicates the powers of an official to conduct a judicial investigation, to participate in cassation, appeals and supervisory instances within the framework of procedural legislation.
Criminal proceedings in court
The legal basis for the participation of the prosecutor in criminal proceedings at the stage of court hearings and hearings is the Constitution of the Russian Federation, the federal law on the prosecutor's office, orders of the Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation, the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation - all these documents govern the particularities of including prosecutors in legal proceedings. According to article 37 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, an official acts as a public prosecutor.
At the same time, the participation of the prosecutor in the consideration by the courts of criminal cases automatically deprives him of the power of administrative power that he had before entering the judicial process. Here the prosecutor is an equal participant in the meeting. The prosecutor takes the side of the injured party, bringing charges. The position of the prosecutor is opposed to the position of the defense.
Criminal proceedings are held during hearings of any court. The participation of the prosecutor in criminal cases is mandatory, regardless of the nature of the proceedings. Initiation of public-private or public affairs is carried out by an investigator or inquiry officer with the permission of the state prosecutor.
Preparatory part of the trial
The basis for this stage of the proceedings is the decision of the prosecutor to institute criminal proceedings. At this stage, no actions are taken to address the case. The purpose of this stage is to preliminarily verify the existence of procedural conditions, without which further trial is impossible.
A trial cannot be started earlier than five days after the defendant is handed a copy of the prosecutor’s decision to transfer the criminal case to court, but if the charge is changed, the time period increases. In addition, if its end falls on a day off, then the last day of the term shall be postponed to the next working day following it.
If issues regarding the challenge of a judge are resolved, the prosecutor pays special attention to their validity. Both the defense and the prosecution have the right to demand the removal from trial of experts, an interpreter, court clerk or other officials who participated in the verification of the legality of the decisions on detention, detention and house arrest, and the extension of the term of these preventive measures. The exclusion of a particular judge from the process in a particular case entails the removal of his secretary, with the exception of cases of his participation in repeated meetings.
It should also be borne in mind that the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation has established a list of circumstances under which the prosecutor may demand exclusion from the process of the defender of the interests of the defendant (lawyer) if:
- the legal representative gave testimony to the investigation relating to the criminal case in question;
- has a family relationship with the accused, is a member of his family, and at the same time he exercised the right not to testify against the defendant, brought to criminal responsibility;
- provides legal assistance to persons whose interests are contrary to the interests of the suspect, accused of committing a crime.
The Russian Criminal Procedure Code defines the petitions that may be filed by the prosecutor or the defense, including interrogation of new witnesses, calling experts, specialists, requesting material evidence, studying documents, etc. The prosecutor has the right to petition for new evidence, including inviting new witnesses if there are grounds .
The court has the right to refuse or satisfy the petition filed by the prosecutor, therefore, the public prosecutor should carefully motivate his statements and express an opinion, justify the need to satisfy or reject the petitions of the other party. In this case, the prosecutor must adhere to a certain position and confidently promote it. From the public prosecutor, statements such as “at the discretion of the court” are not permissible.
In the court of first instance
The prosecutor takes part in the criminal case at the preparation stage and directly at the court hearing stage. In some cases, the appointment of a preliminary meeting is required, which cannot be held without a prosecutor. The reason for conducting an early trial may be a petition of any of the parties that can influence the course of the criminal proceedings, in particular, cause its termination, exclusion from the case of certain evidence, documents. In addition, the presence of a prosecutor in court for a criminal case is of practical importance.
So, let's continue. The judge has the right to return the criminal case to the prosecutor until the removal of obstacles for further consideration by the court. Prosecutors actively participate in the consideration of applications by the defense, present reasoned arguments about their rejection or satisfaction, allowing the judge to make the right decisions about whether to appoint a case for hearing or not.
Public prosecution is sometimes carried out in criminal cases with the participation of a prosecutor or several state prosecutors. Their task in the trial is to present evidence, investigate the facts, evidence, the alibi of the accused. The prosecutor is obliged to present to the judges his position and arguments on the charges, reinforcing them with facts and irrefutable evidence of the defendant's guilt. In addition to initiating a criminal case, the prosecutor has the right to terminate the proceedings for lack of corpus delicti, however, if all the facts testifying to the guilt of the defendant are proved, the prosecutor makes his proposal for sentencing. In parallel with the criminal proceedings, the public prosecutor can provide assistance and support to the injured party in the civil suit case if the participation of the prosecutor will protect the rights of citizens, their public or state interests.
Denial of trial
This concept should not be confused with the refusal of the prosecutor to initiate criminal proceedings. They resort to it only when, during the course of the proceedings, the prosecutor concludes that the evidence provided is not sufficient to bring the defendant with charges. The termination of the criminal case by the prosecutor means the refusal of the previously occupied position, which gives reason to justify the prisoner. The prosecutor is obliged to state the reasons for his refusal, objectively evaluating the evidence examined in court. An official may refuse a charge by submitting a statement.
The prosecution of a criminal case does not guarantee the conviction. The state prosecutor can refuse accusations of the defendant in full or only in part of the charges. A complete refusal entails an automatic termination of criminal proceedings (for example, at the preparatory stage of a court hearing when identifying the accused, it became known that the suspect had not yet reached the age from which criminal liability was established by law).
Until the prosecutor takes the initiative to terminate the proceedings, he is a full-fledged participant in the case, which helps establish important circumstances, gives objective assessments of each fact and creates the conditions for the court to make legal, reasonable and fair decisions. During the debate of the parties, the prosecutor expresses his proposals regarding the punishment for the defendant. The requirements of the public prosecutor must be consistent with the law, be fair and proportionate to the crime committed.
Features of the criminal procedure legislation
In addition to the general procedure for the prosecutor to participate in criminal proceedings, it is worth noting some features of the proceedings in the first court. This procedure is used in the study of any cases in the courts of general jurisdiction (including appeal, cassation), without distinction by the degree of complexity and severity. There is a special regulation for the criminal process that affects both the pre-trial and judicial stages of proceedings, as well as the functions of the prosecutor.
For example, the law provides for a separate decision-making procedure if the defendant agrees with the charge brought by the prosecutor. The return of the criminal case if it does not comply with the norms of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation at this stage is impossible, as evidenced by Chapter 40 of the same regulatory act. Without a thorough trial, a sentence is awarded only when a person is charged with an unlawful act for which a sentence of imprisonment of up to 10 years is prescribed.
If the criminal pleaded guilty and completely agrees with the position of the state prosecutor, the prosecutor makes a motion for sentencing without legal proceedings, which means that the defendant will be able to count on a certain leniency. So the judge does not have the right to punish the accused, which exceeds two-thirds of the maximum possible term of imprisonment or the size of the fine provided for this crime.
Thus, without the official position of the prosecutor and the consent of the defendant to cooperate, it is impossible to pronounce a sentence guided by this rule provided for by the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation. A similar procedure was established when concluding a cooperation agreement with a suspect before a court hearing. This procedure is resorted to in any category of criminal proceedings. Such a technique is especially effective in cases of grave or especially grave crimes, among which the vast majority of episodes are related to organized crime. The purpose of such a procedural simplification is to bring to trial the defendants and persons involved in the criminal case.
Pre-trial proceedings
The participation of the prosecutor in criminal cases involves assisting the investigating authorities in solving the crime, that is, pre-trial proceedings. The chances of solving the crime will increase significantly if the prosecutor succeeds in concluding a cooperation agreement between the injured party and the suspect, which obliges the defendant to take a number of actions aimed at:
- rendering assistance and assistance to the investigation in the disclosure and investigation of the criminal case;
- exposure of other persons involved in the crime;
- return of property obtained unlawfully.
Going on a deal with the investigation, the defendant can count on guaranteed preferences when passing a verdict and determining a measure of punishment. In some cases, suspects are exempted from serving a sentence subject to a number of conditions and the fulfillment of all clauses of the agreement concluded during the pre-trial proceedings.
The decision of the prosecutor in the criminal case has a formal meaning. The role of the public prosecutor is reduced to drawing up a written agreement on the cooperation of the accused with the investigation. The prosecutor can sign a document on pre-trial agreement not only with the suspect himself, but also with a person representing the interests of the defendant.
The conclusion of the prosecutor (subject to the signing of a pre-trial agreement on cooperation) should reflect the progress in fulfilling the obligations undertaken by the accused. When making the final verdict, the judge takes into account whether the defendant complied with all the conditions of the cooperation agreement with the investigation. The indictment of the prosecutor in a criminal case also takes into account the assistance of the suspect to the investigation. As a rule, in these cases the criminal case has a more favorable outcome for the defendant.
Jury meeting
The trial with the participation of the prosecutor and jurors has its own characteristics. The rules of the hearing procedure are outlined in chapter 42 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. In the criminal case, the prosecutor enters the process at the stage of preparation for the trial, that is, at the stage of a mandatory preliminary hearing in the case. Such a procedure can be of fundamental importance, because its outcome allows us to solve the question of the necessity and expediency of the participation of jurors. The opinion of the defendant on the jury trial is taken into account. The decision of the prosecutor in the criminal case is advisory in nature, since the final decision on the participation of the jury is made by the judge.
The powers of the prosecutor also relate to the preparatory part, during which the jury is formed, and the judicial investigation, which starts after the prosecutor issues a decision to institute criminal proceedings. The opening statement of the public prosecutor determines the procedure for examining the evidence provided by the investigation, and the content of the speech of the prosecutor in the debate of the parties includes recommendations for judges and jurors in case of their presence.
After the conviction and its pronouncement by jury, the prosecutor proceeds to the final stage of the study of the criminal case. The state prosecutor delivers a speech in the debate, gives a legal assessment of the possible consequences of the verdict and how the severity of the crime corresponds to the punishment imposed on the defendant.
Attorney at Court of Appeal
The verdict for the defendant does not acquire legal significance immediately. The Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation determines a ten-day period for the acquisition of the validity of a court decision.During this period, both parties to the conflict have the right to appeal. If the injured party or the defendant takes advantage of his right and tries to appeal the verdict, the criminal case will be returned to the prosecutor, and then sent to a higher court for consideration.
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Appeal process
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The next feature of the criminal proceedings in the courts of appeal is that the trial does not begin with the prosecutor presenting the accusation against the defendant. The court session opens with a statement by the presiding judge containing a summary of the appealed decision of the first instance and the essence of the appeal of the public prosecutor.
An exception is cases in which the prosecutor's submission served as the reason for the appeal consideration of the criminal case. If the criminal proceedings were launched on the initiative of another participant, the public prosecutor can speak only after the court speaks of a person who wants to appeal the verdict.
Thus, the court of appeal does not have a rule that the prosecutor is always the first to speak in the debate of the parties. This provision applies only to the courts of first instance, when considering a criminal case on appeal it does not apply. The first is the statement of the person who requested the re-trial.
The outcome of the appeal proceedings may be a similar judgment. If the court of appeal passes a new verdict, it automatically cancels the appealed court decision. If violations are discovered in the criminal case, the court of appeal can cancel the previous verdict and refer the case to the prosecutor for a second review and making the necessary changes. A new sentence shall enter into force upon its proclamation.