We would like to thank all participants for their engagement and fruitful contributions.
Scroll down for a quick summary of our recent seminar:
Dr. Marianna Biral is affiliated with the University of Bologna and in her speech entitled “Overview of the State of Implementation of the Directive on the Right to Access a Lawyer within the Italian System” she referred to one of the main standards developed by the European Court of Human Rights - the right of access to a lawyer for a suspect or accused person. Particular attention was given to the problems of the compliance of Italian legislation with the Directive 2013/48/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 October 2013 on the right of access to a lawyer in criminal proceedings. The author has dealt with the issue of spontaneous statements on self-incrimination in the light of Italian law and ECHR judgment Knox v. Italy.
Federico Carmelo La Vattiata of the University of Trento in his presentation entitled “Guarantees of the Defendant’s Rights During the Pre-trial Stage in the Italian Criminal Procedure” underlined the significance of Article 61 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, which forms the common ground for the guarantees of the accused and suspected person. In general, this includes the right of defense and presumption of innocence, and also other particular rights and safeguards, such as being advised on the right to remain silent before questioning (similar to the US “Miranda warning”).
Professor Szymon Pawelec is affiliated with the University of Warsaw and in his lecture entitled “Model of Pre-trial Detention in Poland. Tendency of Practice in White-Collar Crimes Cases” he referred to the issue of the interpretation of the actual grounds for the application of pre-trial detention. He emphasized the role of a judge, who is privileged to examine the prosecutor’s motion. The second part of the speech was devoted to the increased application of pre-trial detention in white-collar crimes cases, which contribute to certain issues, such as how and to what extent the current solutions should be applied to the accused of committing these crimes.
Dr. Christa M. Madrid Boquin of the Jaume I University in her presentation entitled “The Violation of the Defendant’s Rights and Guarantees and its Impact on the Effectiveness of Evidence in Criminal Procedure – European and Spanish Perspective” addressed the essential meaning of the right to a fair trial, which requires the respect of other guarantees, such as the right to defense and the presumption of innocence. Among many issues, Article 11 of Spanish Organic Law 6/1985, of 1 July, on the Judiciary and the draft of new Criminal Procedure Act of 2020 were discussed. Special attention was given to the influence of the European Court of Human Rights on the recent Spanish Supreme Court’s jurisprudence regarding the exclusionary rule.
Professor Rodrigo da Silva Brandalise is affiliated with Fundação Escola Superior do Ministério Público and in his speech entitled “Safeguard of Judges Actions in Pre-trial Proceedings Brasilian Example” he presented the legal background of the judge of safeguards and explained why the regulations regarding its function were suspended in 2019 by the Brazilian Supreme Court. Also, it was disputed whether its role could safeguard the defendant’s rights in the pre-trial investigation and what impact it would have on further procedure.
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