The principle ne bis in idem and public prosecutor's decisions

Abstract

The prohibition of being liable to be tried or punished again in criminal proceedings for the same offence ne bis in idem - is one of fundamental criminal proceeding principles and a basic human right. It protects the defendant from reopening the proceedings for the same criminal offence in respect of which the proceedings were finalized. Primarily, the effect of this principle is related to final court decisions. Regarding the decisions of the public prosecutor, there is a legal gap. As the reformed criminal procedure provides broader jurisdiction to the public prosecutor, it has seemed a necessity to consider in this paper what status is given in practice to the decisions of this procedural entity regarding the prohibition of ne bis in idem. During the review, the views of the European Court of Human Rights and the Court of Justice of the European Union are presented, which plays a key role in defining the principles and setting standards for the application of the principle, as well as domestic case-law. The author believes that a broader interpretation should be accepted so that the effect of the ne bis in idem principle is not limited only to court decisions but also to include the decisions of the public prosecutor. In this way complete legal certainty is achieved and uncertain legal situations are eliminated.

Keywords

• ne bis in idem
• decision
• finality
• court
• public prosecutor