Pre-trial supervision – mutual recognition

SUMMARY OF:

Decision 2009/829/JHA — pre-trial supervision (alternative to detention)

SUMMARY

WHAT DOES THIS FRAMEWORK DECISION DO?

It lets EU citizens awaiting trial in another EU country return home until their trial begins.

Their home country supervises them using non-custodial (outside prison) measures. For example, asking them to report to a police station every day.

This avoids lengthy pre-trial detention abroad.

KEY POINTS

If the suspect agrees to return home, the country of trial decides on the type of supervision*.

The trial country sends its decision to the home country, with a certificate.

The home country has 20 working days to recognise the decision.

Sometimes, countries will not recognise a decision if:

• the crime is not an offence under national law;
• there are grounds for non-recognition (e.g. the accompanying certificate is incomplete).

For some crimes, countries must recognise decisions. These include:

• terrorism;
• human trafficking;
• being part of a criminal organisation.

If the suspect does not appear for trial, the home country can ‘surrender’ them. This means forcing them to return using a European Arrest Warrant.

The UK (1) has also been part of this scheme since 2014.

SINCE WHEN HAS THE DECISION APPLIED?

1 December 2012.

BACKGROUND

Mutual recognition of pre-trial measures

KEY TERMS

*Supervision measures may require someone to:

• stay at a particular location;
• not leave the country;
• not drive;
• tell the authorities if they move house;
• report at set times to a specific authority (e.g. the police);
• not visit/live in certain places;
• not contact specific people.

ACT

Council Framework Decision 2009/829/JHA of 23 October 2009 on the application, between Member States of the European Union, of the principle of mutual recognition to decisions on supervision measures as an alternative to provisional detention

RELATED ACTS

Report from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council on the implementation by the Member States of the Framework Decisions 2008/909/JHA, 2008/947/JHA and 2009/829/JHA on the mutual recognition of judicial decisions on custodial sentences or measures involving deprivation of liberty, on probation decisions and alternative sanctions and on supervision measures as an alternative to provisional detention (COM(2014) 57 final of 5 February 2014)

Commission Decision 2014/858/EU of 1 December 2014 on the notification by the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland of its wish to participate in acts of the Union in the field of police cooperation and judicial cooperation in criminal matters adopted before the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon and which are not part of the Schengen acquis (OJ L 345, 1.12.2014, pp. 6-9)

last update 28.09.2015

(1) The United Kingdom withdraws from the European Union and becomes a third country (non-EU country) as of 1 February 2020.