'Fair trial standards' in document 'Moldova - Criminal Code'

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RELEVANT SECTIONS OF THE IMPLEMENTING LEGISLATION

GENERAL PART

Chapter I
THE CRIMINAL CODE AND THE PRINCIPLES OF ITS APPLICATION

Article 4. Principle of Humanity

(2) Criminal law does not aim to cause physical suffering or to infringe on human dignity. No person can be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhumane, or degrading punishment or treatment.

SPECIAL PART

Chapter I
CRIMES AGAINST THE PEACE AND SECURITY OF HUMANITY, WAR CRIMES

Article 137. Inhumane Treatment

(3) The torture, mutilation, extermination, or execution without legal trial of the persons specified in par. (1) shall be punished by imprisonment for 16 to 20 years or by life imprisonment.

SPECIAL PART

Chapter XIV
CRIMES AGAINST JUSTICE

Article 308. Illegal Detention or Arrest

(1) The deliberate illegal detention of a person by the person conducting a criminal investigation shall be punished by imprisonment for up to 2 years with the deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or to practice certain activities for up to 5 years.

(2) The deliberate illegal arrest of person by a judge shall be punished by imprisonment for up to 3 years with the deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or to practice certain activities for up to 5 years.

[Par.3 art.308 excluded by Law No. 277-XVI dated 18.12.2008, in force as of 24.05.2009]

(4) The actions set forth in par. (1) or (2) that cause severe consequences shall be punished by imprisonment for 3 to 7 years with the deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or to practice certain activities for up to 5 years.

SPECIAL PART

Chapter XIV
CRIMES AGAINST JUSTICE

Article 309. Coercion to Testify

(1) Coercing a person by threats or other illegal acts to testify during an interrogation, coercing in the same way an expert to offer a conclusion, or coercing a translator or an interpreter to provide an incorrect translation or interpretation committed by the person conducting a criminal investigation shall be punished by imprisonment for up to 3 years with the deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or to practice a certain activity for up to 5 years.

(2) The same action involving :

a) violence ;
b) cruel, inhumane, or degrading treatment ;
c) a plea bargaining agreement,
shall be punished by imprisonment for 3 to 8 years with the deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or to practice certain activities for up to 5 years.

SPECIAL PART

Chapter XIV
CRIMES AGAINST JUSTICE

Article 309(1). Torture

(1) Deliberately inflicting severe physical or mental pain or suffering on a person specifically in order to obtain from that person or from a third person information or confessions, to punish the person for an act which he/she or a third person committed or is suspected of having committed, or for any other reason based on whatever form of discrimination provided that such pain or suffering is caused by an official or any other person acting in an official basis, or upon incitement or express or tacit consent of such persons, except for pain or suffering resulting exclusively from legal sanctions that are inherent to these sanctions or caused by such sanctions shall be punished by imprisonment for 2 to 5 years with the deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or to practice certain activities for up to 5 years.

(2) The organization of or the incitement to torture shall be punished by imprisonment for 3 to
8 years with the deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or to practice a certain activity for up to 5 years.

(3) The actions set forth in par. (1) or (2) committed :

a) against a person known to be a juvenile or a pregnant woman or taking advantage of the victim's known or obvious helpless condition caused by advanced age, disease, physical or mental handicap or another factor ;
[Letter b) excluded by Law No. 277-XVI dated 18.12.2008, in force as of 24.05.2009]
c) by two or more persons ;
[Letter d) excluded by Law No. 277-XVI dated 18.12.2008, in force as of 24.05.2009]
e) with the use of special torture tools or other objects adjusted for this purpose ;
f) by a high-ranking official ;
shall be punished by imprisonment for 5 to 10 years with the deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or to practice certain activities for 2 to 5 years.

RELEVANT ROME STATUTE PROVISIONS

Article 55
Rights of persons during an investigation
1. In respect of an investigation under this Statute, a person:
(a) Shall not be compelled to incriminate himself or herself or to confess guilt;
(b) Shall not be subjected to any form of coercion, duress or threat, to torture or to any other form of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment;
(c) Shall, if questioned in a language other than a language the person fully understands and speaks, have, free of any cost, the assistance of a competent interpreter and such translations as are necessary to meet the requirements of fairness; and
(d) Shall not be subjected to arbitrary arrest or detention, and shall not be deprived of his or her liberty except on such grounds and in accordance with such procedures as are established in this Statute.
2. Where there are grounds to believe that a person has committed a crime within the jurisdiction of the Court and that person is about to be questioned either by the Prosecutor, or by national authorities pursuant to a request made under Part 9, that person shall also have the following rights of which he or she shall be informed prior to being questioned:
(a) To be informed, prior to being questioned, that there are grounds to believe that he or she has committed a crime within the jurisdiction of the Court;
(b) To remain silent, without such silence being a consideration in the determination of guilt or innocence;
(c) To have legal assistance of the person's choosing, or, if the person does not have legal assistance, to have legal assistance assigned to him or her, in any case where the interests of justice so require, and without payment by the person in any such case if the person does not have sufficient means to pay for it; and
(d) To be questioned in the presence of counsel unless the person has voluntarily waived his or her right to counsel.

Article 63
Trial in the presence of the accused
1. The accused shall be present during the trial.
2. If the accused, being present before the Court, continues to disrupt the trial, the Trial Chamber may remove the accused and shall make provision for him or her to observe the trial and instruct counsel from outside the courtroom, through the use of communications technology, if required. Such measures shall be taken only in exceptional circumstances after other reasonable alternatives have proved inadequate, and only for such duration as is strictly required.

Article 66
Presumption of innocence
1. Everyone shall be presumed innocent until proved guilty before the Court in accordance with the applicable law.
2. The onus is on the Prosecutor to prove the guilt of the accused.
3. In order to convict the accused, the Court must be convinced of the guilt of the accused beyond reasonable doubt.

Article 67
Rights of the accused
1. In the determination of any charge, the accused shall be entitled to a public hearing, having regard to the provisions of this Statute, to a fair hearing conducted impartially, and to the following minimum guarantees, in full equality:
(a) To be informed promptly and in detail of the nature, cause and content of the charge, in a language which the accused fully understands and speaks;
(b) To have adequate time and facilities for the preparation of the defence and to communicate freely with counsel of the accused's choosing in confidence;
(c) To be tried without undue delay;
(d) Subject to article 63, paragraph 2, to be present at the trial, to conduct the defence in person or through legal assistance of the accused's choosing, to be informed, if the accused does not have legal assistance, of this right and to have legal assistance assigned by the Court in any case where the interests of justice so require, and without payment if the accused lacks sufficient means to pay for it;
(e) To examine, or have examined, the witnesses against him or her and to obtain the attendance and examination of witnesses on his or her behalf under the same conditions as witnesses against him or her. The accused shall also be entitled to raise defences and to present other evidence admissible under this Statute;
(f) To have, free of any cost, the assistance of a competent interpreter and such translations as are necessary to meet the requirements of fairness, if any of the proceedings of or documents presented to the Court are not in a language which the accused fully understands and speaks;
(g) Not to be compelled to testify or to confess guilt and to remain silent, without such silence being a consideration in the determination of guilt or innocence;
(h) To make an unsworn oral or written statement in his or her defence; and
(i) Not to have imposed on him or her any reversal of the burden of proof or any onus of rebuttal.
2. In addition to any other disclosure provided for in this Statute, the Prosecutor shall, as soon as practicable, disclose to the defence evidence in the Prosecutor's possession or control which he or she believes shows or tends to show the innocence of the accused, or to mitigate the guilt of the accused, or which may affect the credibility of prosecution evidence. In case of doubt as to the application of this paragraph, the Court shall decide.