Criminal Accusation in Slovakia (Slovak republic)

Our law firm cooperates with attorney who works solely with criminal cases. Here are some informations from our colleagu for you to know how it works in criminal proceedings in Slovakia.

Criminal proceedings shall be the proceedings held in compliance with the present Act; criminal prosecution shall mean a stage of the proceedings beginning with the commencement of criminal prosecution and ending when a judgment or other decision on the merits by the body involved in criminal proceedings or the court becomes final and conclusive; pre-trial proceedings shall mean a stage beginning with the commencement of criminal prosecution and ending when an indictment is filed, a plea bargaining agreement (hereinafter referred to as the “plea agreement”) is concluded, or the judgment on the merits by the body involved in criminal proceedings becomes final and conclusive.

Criminal prosecution shall be initiated by a resolution. If there is a danger of delay, the police officer shall initiate criminal prosecution by carrying out the securing procedures, unrepeatable procedures, or exigent procedures. Immediately after performing these procedures he shall issue a resolution on the commencement of criminal prosecution, specifying which of the aforesaid procedures was used to initiate the prosecution. The police officer shall notify the complainant and the victim of the commencement of criminal prosecution. The police officer shall serve the resolution on the prosecutor no later than within 48 hours. The police officer shall apply, as appropriate, paragraph 1 if he learns about the grounds for prosecution from any other source than a criminal complaint.

The resolution on the commencement of criminal prosecution shall have to contain the description of the act, including the place, time, or other circumstances, and the type of the criminal offence involved, i. e. its legal name and the relevant provision of the Criminal Code. The resolution does not specify the grounds on which it is based.

If it is not possible to ensure that the securing procedures, exigent procedures, or unrepeatable procedures initiating the criminal prosecution be performed by a competent police officer, they may be performed by the police officer who is not locally competent and who shall have to refer the case to the competent police officer together with the resolution on the commencement of criminal prosecution not later than within three days of the execution of such procedures. After the commencement of criminal prosecution, police officers shall have the right to execute all the procedures in keeping with this Act.

The proceedings shall be held by the court in whose district the crime was committed. If the place of crime cannot be identified or if the criminal offence was committed in a foreign country, the proceedings shall be held by the court having jurisdiction over domicile, a workplace or place of residence of the accused; if such places cannot be identified or are located outside of the territory of the Slovak Republic, the proceedings shall be held by the court that has jurisdiction over the place in which the criminal offence was detected.

Accusation in Slovakia according to § 206 of Criminal procedure code in Slovakia:

(1) If the criminal complaint or facts ascertained after the commencement of criminal prosecution give reasonable grounds to conclude that a certain person has committed a criminal offence, the police officer shall forthwith issue a resolution to file charges of which he immediately notifies the accused and which he serves on the prosecutor not later than within 48 hours. If the accused is orally informed of the charges brought against him, the police officer shall have to provide the accused forthwith a counterpart of the resolution on the filing of charges.

(2) The decision to institute criminal prosecution and to file charges may be made by means of a single resolution, of which the police officer notifies forthwith the accused and which he serves on a prosecutor not later than within 48 hours. He shall notify the complainant and the victim of this action. If the commencement of the criminal prosecution and the filing of charges are announced orally, the police officer shall have to provide the accused a counterpart of the respective resolution.

(3) The resolution to file charges shall have to give the name of the person charged, the description of the act, including the place, time, or other circumstances in order to prevent mistaking it for another act, and legal designation of the criminal offence, including the relevant provision of the Criminal Code and the grounds for the charges.

(4) If the investigation or summary investigation reveals any fact that gives reasonable grounds to conclude that the accused has committed another act which was not covered by the resolution to file charges, the police officer shall file charges also in respect of that other act. If no criminal prosecution has been initiated in respect of the latter act, it shall be first necessary to make the relevant decision pursuant to § 199 paragraph 1.

(5) If the investigation or summary investigation reveals any fact that gives reasonable grounds to conclude that before the resolution to file charges was announced, the accused committed another partial attack as part of a continuing criminal offence which was not covered by the resolution to file charges, the police officer shall issue a resolution extending the charges also to the aforesaid partial attack of a continuing criminal offence. If no criminal prosecution has been initiated in respect of such partial attack, no action under Section 199 paragraph 1 shall be required.

(6) If the investigation or summary investigation reveals that the act covered by the charges constitutes a different criminal offence from the one which is legally qualified in the resolution to file charges, or an additional criminal offence, the police officer shall notify the accused of this fact in writing; he may draw up a record of the notification. He shall serve the counterpart of the notification or of the record to the prosecutor within 48 hours.

Inadmissibility of Criminal Prosecution in Slovakia

Criminal prosecution may not be instituted or, if already initiated, may not continue and shall be stayed

a) if criminal prosecution is not allowed because of the statute of limitation,

b) if the prosecution is conducted against a person enjoying exemption from the jurisdiction of the bodies involved in criminal proceedings and the court, or against a person who may be lawfully prosecuted only on the basis of an authorization, and the competent body has not issued such authorization,

c) if conducted against a minor person who may not be held criminally liable,

d) if conducted against a deceased person or a person declared dead,

e) if conducted against a person whose previous prosecution for the same offence resulted in a final and conclusive court sentence, or it was lawfully stayed or conditionally discontinued and the accused proved himself, or conciliation has been reached and the criminal prosecution was discontinued unless such decision was declared null and void in a prescribed manner,

f) if the criminal prosecution requires the consent of the injured party and such consent has not been granted or has been withdrawn, or

g) if so stipulated by a promulgated international treaty.

Where any of the grounds referred to in paragraph 1 only relates to a partial attack, which is a part of continuing criminal offence, the criminal prosecution in respect of remaining part of such criminal offence shall not be impeded. Criminal prosecution stayed on the grounds set out in subparagraph a) of paragraph 1 shall, however, be resumed if, within three days of the receipt of the resolution on the discontinuance of criminal prosecution, the accused insists on the hearing of the case. The accused shall have to be duly advised of this right. Criminal prosecution stayed on the grounds set out in subparagraph b) of paragraph 1 shall, however, be resumed after the termination of the mandate of the Member of the National Council of the Slovak Republic, the office of a judge of the Constitutional Court and the office of the Prosecutor General under conditions referred to in Section 215 paragraph 8.

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