Rights of a person detained in Moldova

Unofficial translation

Rights of a person detained in Moldova

According to the legislation of the Republic of Moldova, a detained person has the right to be informed of the reasons for his detention,

Detention – a measure taken by the competent body to deprive a person of his liberty for a period of up to 72 hours.

The detained person must be provided with written information about his rights under this article, including the right to remain silent and not to testify against himself, as well as to receive from the criminal investigation body explanations of all his rights.

To receive legal advice, in confidential terms, from the defense attorney until the beginning of the first hearing as a suspect.

I) Extract from Criminal Procedure of the Republic of Moldova

In the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Republic of Moldova, the rights of detainees are detailed in Articles 165-169 and 189. Of particular importance is Article 167, which describes the detention procedure and the rights of the detainee, including the right to information about the reasons for detention, the right to a defense lawyer and other rights.

• Article 165. Concept of detention
• Article 166. Grounds for the detention of a person suspected of committing a crime
• Article 167. Procedure for detaining a person
• Article 168. Right of citizens to apprehend a person suspected of committing a crime
• Article 169. Detention of a person based on an order by the criminal prosecution authority for the purpose of bringing charges
• Article 170. Detention of an accused person based on an order of the criminal prosecution body prior to their arrest
• Article 171. Detention of a person based on a court ruling in the event of a crime committed during a court hearing
• Article 171¹. Detention of a person for the purpose of extradition
• Article 173. Notification of detention
• Article 174. Release of a detained person

1.1) According to Article 167 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Republic of Moldova:

• The criminal investigation body is obliged, within three hours of deprivation of liberty, to draw up a report of detention, specifying the reasons and circumstances of detention, the detainee's physical condition, his complaints, claims and other information.
• The detainee shall be provided with written information about his rights (article 64), including the right to remain silent, not to incriminate himself, to give explanations, to be assisted by a defense lawyer and to testify in his presence.
• The reasons for the immediate detention shall be made known to the detained person only in the presence of a chosen defender or a duty lawyer who provides emergency legal assistance.
• The detainee has the right to confidential communication with a defense lawyer before the initial interrogation.
• Special provisions apply in the case of the detention of a minor.

The arresting officer has the right to conduct a personal search of the detainee.

1.1.1) Furthermore, Article 189 provides for the right of the detainee or arrested person to protective measures, including informing the competent authorities about the persons under the detainee's protection and ensuring the supervision of the detainee's property.

1.2) According to Article 166. Grounds for the detention of a person suspected of committing a crime

(1) The criminal investigation body has the right to detain a person, if there is a reasonable suspicion of the commission of a crime for which the law provides for a prison sentence of more than one year, only in the following cases:

• 1) if the person was caught in the act;
• 2) if an eyewitness, including the victim, directly indicates that this person committed the crime;
• 3) if obvious traces of the crime are discovered on the person's body or clothes, at his/her residence or in his/her transport unit;
• 4) if traces left by this person are discovered at the scene of the crime person;
• 5) if he/she tried to hide or his/her identity could not be established.

(3) The detention of the suspected person may also be ordered if there are reasonable grounds to assume that he/she will evade criminal prosecution, will prevent the discovery of the truth or will commit other crimes.

(4) The detention of a mature person on the grounds provided for in paragraph (1) may take place until the crime is registered in the manner established by law. The crime is registered immediately, but not later than 3 hours from the moment the detained person is brought to the criminal prosecution body, and if the act for which the person was detained is not properly registered, the person is released immediately, with the exception provided for in art. 273 paragraph (5).

(5) The detention of a person under the terms of this article may not exceed 72 hours, and in the case of a minor – 24 hours from the moment of deprivation of liberty. The period of detention must not be longer than strictly necessary for the detention.

(5¹) If the detention of a person is carried out to establish his identity, the period of detention may not exceed 6 hours.

(6) The term provided for in paragraph (5) shall run from the moment of deprivation of liberty of the person. The respective term shall include the time for carrying out procedural actions immediately following the moment of deprivation of liberty of the person until the drawing up of the detention report, in the situation where the person was effectively constrained in his freedom of movement during the performance of these measures.

(7) The person detained under the terms of this article must be brought as soon as possible, from the moment of detention, before the investigating judge in order to examine the issue of his arrest or, as the case may be, of his release. The prosecutor, until the expiry of the term provided for in art. 308 paragraph (12), shall issue an order for the release of the detained person or, as the case may be, shall submit the request for arrest to the investigating judge.

II) Extract from Contravention Code of the Republic of Moldova

In the Contravention Code of the Republic of Moldova, the rights of detainee is enshrined in Book II, Section I, Chapter V («Procedural measures of coercion»), which regulates the detention procedure.

Detention (Article 433) consists of the short-term restriction of an individual's liberty and may be applied in the event of: a) flagrant contraventions for which this Code prescribes the sanction of administrative arrest; b) the impossibility of identifying the person against whom contravention proceedings have been initiated, provided all identification measures have been exhausted; c) the enforcement of a court judgment regarding the expulsion of the person; d) violation of the state border regime, the border zone regime, or the state border crossing point regime.

(3) The detained person shall be informed without delay, in a language they understand, of the reasons for the detention, with the fact of such notification being recorded in the detention report.

(4) The detained person shall be informed without delay, against signature, of the rights provided for in Art. 384, with the fact of such notification being recorded in the detention report.

(5) The detained person shall be granted the opportunity, without delay, to notify two persons of their choice regarding the detention. The fact of such notification, or of the refusal to notify, shall be recorded, against signature, in the detention report.

The following articles are particularly important:

• Article 434. Detention record
  (1) Upon the detention of a person, a detention record shall be drawn up within no more than 3 hours, stating the date and place of its drafting; the position, surname, and first name of the person who drafted the record; details concerning the detained person; and the date, time, place, and reason for the detention.
  (2) The detention record shall be signed by the person who drafted it and by the detained person. Any refusal by the detained person to sign the record shall be noted therein, with the fact attested by at least two witnesses.
• Article 435. Duration of detention and conditions of deprivation of liberty Duration of detention may not exceed three hours, except in cases provided for by law. The detainee shall be provided with the conditions provided for persons in pre-trial detention.
• Article 436. Release of the detained person
  Grounds for the release of a detainee, including if the suspicions are not confirmed, the period of detention has expired or there are no grounds for continued detention. Upon release, the detainee shall be given a copy of the report stating all the circumstances of the detention and release.

Thus, the rights of a detainee include:

• The right to be promptly informed of the reasons for detention in a language that he understands.
• The right to have his rights explained to him and to be given a signature.
• The right to notify two persons of his detention.
• The right to have a detention report drawn up and to receive a copy.
• The right to be released if there are no grounds for detention or on expiry of the period of detention.
• The right to conditions of detention that are in accordance with the law.

III) Extract from Enforcement Code of the Republic of Moldova

The rights of a detainee are detailed in Article 175² of the Executive (Enforcement) Code of the Republic of Moldova.

(1) A detained person is guaranteed:

• a) the right not to be subjected to torture, or to inhuman or degrading treatment;
• b) the right to be informed of the reasons for the detention and of their rights;
• c) the right to access legal assistance;
• d) the right to have a relative or another person notified regarding the detention and custody;
• e) the right to medical assistance.

(2) The detained person also has other rights provided for by legislation.