Performers of the seminar on 11th May
We would like to introduce our performers of the future seminar entitled “The Protection of Children in Judicial Procedures: Can we Create the Universal and Homogeneous Standard?”.
Click on the icon > to read the descriptions and abstracts of the performers.
Justyna Głębocka PhD - University of Warsaw
The seminar will be inaugurated with dr. Justyna Głębocka presentation. Dr. Justyna Głębocka is an attorney and Assistant Professor in the Department of International Criminal Procedure at the Faculty of Law and Administration at the University of Warsaw. Her main research interests include the organization of the judicial system and its impact on judicial activity. In the presentation entitled “International and European Procedural Safeguards for Juvenile Offenders”, dr. Głębocka will address the procedural rights of children suspected or accused in criminal proceedings.
Children who commit the punishable act require special treatment, which takes into account, above all, educational and corrective goals. For this reason, the legal situation of juvenile offenders is of interest to the international human rights organizations, which define the age limit of criminal responsibility. Concerning juveniles, the general international legal acts on human rights apply, followed by special regulations dealing explicitly with the children’s rights. In general, the need to ensure their rights that together will guarantee just and fair court proceedings is indicated, taking into account the child’s welfare and his/her cognitive capabilities according to age, as well as his/her physical and mental development. This presentation will address the fundamental children’s rights, with special reference to their principal assumptions within the context of conducting the proceedings regarding juvenile offenders. Attention will be given particularly to those rights and guarantees that could have an impact on the effectiveness of criminal justice.
Denise Casanova Villela - Fundação Escola Superior do Ministério Público
Our second performer, Denise Casanova Villela is a State Prosecutor of the 18th Civil Justice Prosecutor’s Office and a specialist in interviewing children in both criminal and civil proceedings. She is a lecturer at Fundação Escola Superior do Ministério Público and has contributed to the drafting of Law no. 13.431/17 and decree 9.603/18. In the presentation entitled “Children and Adolescents’ Testimony as Victims or Witnesses of Violence in the Brazilian Criminal System”, Prosecutor Casanova Villela will address the credibility of a witness and victim in the Brazilian criminal proceedings.
The presentation will be divided into six main points of interest. Firstly, the regulations establishing procedural safeguards and layers of protection arising from various legal acts will be presented. Then attention will be focused on the issues of combatting secondary victimization and integral care approaches along with policies aiming to prevent violence, conducting an analysis based on selected legislation. A separate analysis will be dedicated to the issue of children and adolescent witnesses in a criminal trial, particularly concerning spontaneous disclosure or special procedures regarding the hearing. Furthermore, the author will present a brief introduction to general criminal procedure and the role of the authorities, and the issues of precautionary evidentiary actions and forensic interview protocols.
Magdalena Kowalewska-Łukuć PhD - University of Szczecin
Dr. Magdalena Kowalewska-Łukuć is an Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Law and Administration at the University of Szczecin. Her research interests are focused mainly on substantive criminal law. In the presentation entitled “Questioning of a minor in Polish criminal proceedings based on international and European standards”, Dr. Kowalewska-Łukuć will address the legal background of an interrogation of a minor in the Polish criminal proceedings.
This presentation aims to present the Polish legal regulations concerning the procedure of questioning a minor in the Polish criminal proceedings, taking into account the international and European standards. For this purpose, the content of Articles 185a and 185b of the Polish Code of Criminal Procedure and the practice of their application will be analyzed. Moreover, the basic assumptions of, inter alia, the Guidelines for the Treatment of Children in the Criminal Proceedings adopted by the United Nations in Resolution No. 2005/20, the 1989 United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, and the Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse, adopted in Lanzarote in 2007, will also be presented.
Andrea Zampini PhD - Sapienza University of Rome
Dr. Andrea Zampini is a research fellow at the Sapienza University of Rome, where he also received his Ph.D. His main research field is focused on the relationship between the right to privacy and criminal investigations. In the presentation entitled “Special safeguards for juvenile offenders in the Italian legal system”, Dr. Zampini will address the Italian regulations protecting the minor’s rights, which could be taken as an example by other legal systems.
As a result of the 1988 reform, the Italian legal system offers a series of peculiar safeguards to the minors accused of a crime, which require greater protection than the adults. The presidential decree no. 448/1988, in line with standards set forward by European Directive no. 2016/800, wants to protect juveniles from the “labeling effect” of the criminal trial. In addition to the accusatorial model – also adopted for adults – the legislature built up some special forms of procedural protections for a minor. These forms apply in various aspects:
defensive, affective and psychological support is guaranteed;
psychological integrity is protected through some trial devices (i.e. the pure cross-examination of the defendant is usually forbidden);
privacy is protected by substantial limitations to the publicity of hearings and through deontological rules issued by the press association.
Some of these safeguards reach higher levels than those drawn by the European legislature and can be taken as an example by other legal systems; some others, even if formally matching the EU standard, may be improved.
Koidu Saia PhD - Tallinn University
Dr. Koidu Saia has been a research coordinator at the CIRIC research group since 2015 and has recently obtained her Ph.D. at the Tallinn University, School of Governance, Law, and Society. The scope of her research covers the proceedings of dually involved children who have committed offenses under the old and new legal frameworks before and after January 1, 2018. In the presentation entitled “Interprofessional Collaboration in Social Rehabilitation Service for Dually Involved Children in Estonia’’, Dr. Saia will address how the interprofessional collaboration, as one of the principles of child-friendly justice, has been practiced in the social rehabilitation services teams and will describe the context of the dually involved children’s court case proceedings.
This paper is about vulnerable children who have faced difficulties from the perspectives of welfare and judicial systems and who are receiving social rehabilitation services (SRS) provided by interprofessional (IP) teams. It is comprised of four studies and datasets with results published in three peer-reviewed articles in 2018, 2019, and 2020—all of which aimed to provide insight into how interprofessional collaboration (IPC) as one of the principles of child-friendly justice (CFJ) has been practiced in SRS teams and the context of dually involved children court case proceedings in Estonia.
This presentation will aim to explain how IPC as one of the principles of CFJ has been practiced in SRS teams and the context of dually involved children’s court case proceedings. The following research questions will be answered based on conducted research:
How are the principles of CFJ implemented in the proceedings of criminal matters involving juveniles in Estonia in the context of the principle of multidisciplinary assistance provision?
How do rehabilitation specialists in SRTs reflect IP teamwork?
What are the perceptions of children, parents, and rehabilitation specialists about procedural, organizational, contextual, and relational components of IPC in SRS? 4. What is needed for more efficient IPC in SRS from the perspective of service providers (rehabilitation specialists) and service users (children and their parents)?
The main contribution of the conducted research is the comprehensive and combined-method approach to the topic, which enabled recognition of the nuances of IPC in the context of SRS of dually involved children through the analysis of written assessments, the perspectives of rehabilitation specialists, and, the most important, the viewpoints of children and parents.
Anyone is welcome to join as a listener.
Stay tuned to see the highlights and main conclusions of the upcoming discussion.
