The Secretariat of the High Council of Justice has prepared a synthesis on the practice of consideration by the Council of submissions on consent to detention, remand in custody or arrest of judges in 2016-2021
The comprehensive document contains:
- detailed analysis of the legal basis for ensuring judicial independence, procedural aspects and special procedure for consideration by the High Council of Justice on issues of their responsibility;
- general overview of the practice of consideration by the HCJ of submissions on consent to detention of judges, remand in custody or arrest;
- analysis of decisions made by the HCJ based on the results of their consideration;
- analysis of judicial practice during consideration of motions for choosing measures of restraint against judges after adoption of the relevant decision by the HCJ;
- information on appealing decisions of the HCJ on these issues, etc.
The synthesis will allow to form an idea of the state of ensuring judicial independence of judges in Ukraine for the period from 2016 to 2021 when applying measures of restraint to judges as measures to ensure criminal proceedings related to restriction of the freedom and freedom of movement, and will be useful to form sustainable practice during exercise by the High Council of Justice of its powers.
It should be reminded that the independence and inviolability of judges are guaranteed by the Constitution and laws of Ukraine. Without the consent of the High Council of Justice, a judge shall not be detained or remanded in custody or arrest pending a conviction by a court, except for the detention of a judge during or immediately after the commission of a grave or special grave crime.
The HCJ notes that the observance of the guarantees of the inviolability of judges in the event of criminal prosecution will protect them from unreasonable restrictions on the freedom and right of freedom of movement of a judge if it is necessary to apply detention, remand in custody, house or administrative arrest, as well as possible influence on a judge and interference with the administration of justice.