PROTECTION OF VICTIMS’ RIGHTS Maja Munivrana Vajda Sunčana Roksandić Vidlička Aleksandar Maršavelski

Free movement is one of the key principles of the European Union Consequences for victims? Positive obligations of states?

Victims in the EU DIRECTIVE 2012/29/EU OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 25 October 2012 establishing minimum standards on the rights, support and protection of victims of crime, and replacing Council Framework Decision 2001/220/JHA Budapest Roadmap – victims at the heart of the criminal justice agenda

The applicants are five Croatian nationals, husband, wife and their children, who live in Cakovec (Croatia). The applicants are the relatives of M.T. and her child, V.T., born in March 2005, who were both killed in August 2006 by M. M., V.T.'s father. M.T. and M.M. lived together in the home of M.T.'s parents until July 2005, when M.M. moved out after disputes with the members of the household. In January 2006 M.T. lodged a criminal complaint against M.M. for death threats he had allegedly made. On 15 March 2006 the first instance court found M.M. guilty of repeatedly threatening M.T. that he would kill her, himself and their child with a bomb. He was sentenced to 5 months' imprisonment and, as a security measure, was ordered to have compulsory psychiatric treatment during his imprisonment. On 28 April 2006 the appeal court reduced that treatment to the duration of M.M.'s prison sentence. M.M. served his sentence and was released on 3 July 2006. On 15 August 2006 he shot dead M.T. and their daughter, V.T., before committing suicide by turning the gun on himself.

The applicants complained, under Article 2 (right to life) and Article 13 (right to an effective remedy), that the State had failed to take adequate measures to protect M.T. and V.T. and had not conducted an effective investigation into the possible responsibility of the State for their deaths.

Who is a victim? 1) A natural person who has suffered harm as a direct consequence of a criminal offence Harm can be physical, mental or emotional, or economic loss 2) Family members: Of a person whose death was directly caused by a crime Who have suffered harm as a result of that person’s death

Family members? Spouse Relatives in direct line Siblings and dependants of the victim the person who is living with the victim in a committed intimate relationship, in a joint household and on stable and continuous bases

Which victims? Victims of criminal offences committed in the Union Victims of offences prosecuted in the Union Victims of international – extraterritorial offences migrants

Provision of information and support to the victims Right to understand and to be understood (Art. 3) Right to receive information from the first contact with a competent authority (Art. 4) Right of victims when making a complaint (Art. 5) Right to receive information about their case (Art. 6) Right to interpretation and translation during proceedings (Art. 7.) Right to access to victim support services (Art. 8)

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Victims’ support Right to access victim support services VICTIM SUPPORT SERVICES SHOULD (AS MIN): Information, advice and support on the rights of victims, access to compensation, their role in the criminal proceedings and attendance at the trial - Emotional and, where available, psychological support - Advice relating to financial and practical issues arising from the crime - Unless otherwise provided by other public or private services, advice relating to the risks of retaliation, intimidation and repeat or further victimisation and how to prevent or avoid it - Information and if required, referral to specialist support service

Participation in criminal proceedings Right to be heard (Art. 10) Rights in the event of a decision not to prosecute (Art. 11) Right to safeguards in the context of restorative justice services (Art. 12) Right to legal aid (Art. 13) Right to reimbursement of expenses (Art. 14) Right to the return of property (Art. 15) Right to decision on compensation from the offender in the course of criminal proceedings (Art. 16) Right of victims resident in another Member State (Art. 17)

Protection of victims and recognition of victims with specific protection needs Right to protection (Art. 18) Right to avoidance of contact between victim and offender (Art. 19) Right to protection of victims during criminal investigations (Art. 20) Right to protection of privacy (Art. 21) Individual assessments of victims to identify specific protection needs (Art. 22) Right to protection of victims with specific protection needs during criminal proceedings (Art. 23) Right to protection of child victims during criminal proceedings (Art. 24)

Other relevant provisions TRAINING OF PRACTITIONERS - Deal with victims in an impartial, respectful and professional manner COOPERATION AND COORDINATION OF SERVICES the exchange of best practices consultation in individual cases Assistance to European networks working on matters directly relevant to victim’s rights

Restorative justice any process whereby the victim and the offender are enabled, if they freely consent, to participate actively in the resolution of matters arising from the criminal offence through the help of an impartial third party.

Safeguards to restorative justice Member States shall take measures to safeguard the victim from secondary and repeat victimisation, from intimidation and from retaliation, to be applied when providing any restorative justice services. - Such measures shall ensure that victims who choose to participate in restorative justice processes have access to safe and competent restorative justice services, subject to at least the following conditions: (a) the restorative justice services are used only if they are in the interest of the victim, subject to any safety considerations, and are based on the victim's free and informed consent, which may be withdrawn at any time; (b) before agreeing to participate in the restorative justice process, the victim is provided with full and unbiased information about that process and the potential outcomes as well as information about the procedures for supervising the implementation of any agreement; (c) the offender has acknowledged the basic facts of the case; (d) any agreement is arrived at voluntarily and may be taken into account in any further criminal proceedings; (e) discussions in restorative justice processes that are not conducted in public are confidential and are not subsequently disclosed, except with the agreement of the parties or as required by national law due to an overriding public interest.