BETA

Awaiting Parliament 1st reading / single reading / budget 1st stage



2013/0408(COD) Criminal proceedings: procedural safeguards for children suspected or accused
Next event: Indicative plenary sitting date, 1st reading/single reading 2015/10/05
RoleCommitteeRapporteurShadows
Opinion JURI
Opinion JURI THEIN Alexandra (ALDE)
Lead LIBE CHINNICI Caterina (S&D) CSÁKY Pál (EPP), KIRKHOPE Timothy (ECR), GRIESBECK Nathalie (ALDE), DE JONG Dennis (GUE/NGL), LAMBERT Jean (Verts/ALE), FERRARA Laura (EFD)
Lead LIBE ROMERO LÓPEZ Carmen (S&D)
Lead committee dossier: LIBE/8/00269
Legal Basis TFEU 082-p2

Activites

  • 2015/10/05 Indicative plenary sitting date, 1st reading/single reading
  • 2015/02/12 Committee report tabled for plenary, 1st reading/single reading
    • A8-0020/2015 summary
  • 2015/02/05 Vote in committee, 1st reading/single reading
  • 2014/10/20 Committee referral announced in Parliament, 1st reading/single reading
  • #3298
  • 2014/03/03 Council Meeting
    • 3298 summary
  • 2014/01/13 Committee referral announced in Parliament, 1st reading/single reading
  • 2013/11/27 Legislative proposal published
    • COM(2013)0822 summary
    • DG {'url': 'http://ec.europa.eu/justice/', 'title': 'Justice'}, JOUROVÁ Věra

Documents

  • Legislative proposal published: COM(2013)0822
  • Debate in Council: 3298
  • Committee report tabled for plenary, 1st reading/single reading: A8-0020/2015

History

(these mark the time of scraping, not the official date of the change)

activities/6/date
Old
2015-10-05T00:00:00
New
2015-12-15T00:00:00
activities/6/date
Old
2015-12-15T00:00:00
New
2015-10-05T00:00:00
activities/0/docs/0/celexid
CELEX:52013PC0822:EN
activities/6/date
Old
2015-09-07T00:00:00
New
2015-12-15T00:00:00
links/European Commission/title
Old
PreLex
New
EUR-Lex
procedure/subject/0
Old
1.10 Fundamental rights in the Union, Charter
New
1.10 Fundamental rights in the EU, Charter
activities/0/commission/0/Commissioner
Old
REDING Viviane
New
JOUROVÁ Věra
activities/5/docs/0/text
  • The Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs adopted the report by Caterina CHINNICI (S&D, IT) on the proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on procedural safeguards for children suspected or accused in criminal proceedings.

    The committee recommended that Parliament’s position adopted in first reading following the ordinary legislative procedure should amend the Commission proposal as follows:

    Scope: the Directive applied to suspects or accused persons subject to criminal proceedings who had reached the age of 18 but were still under the age of 21 at the beginning of those proceedings, which related to offences allegedly committed before those persons had reached the age of 18.

    Right to information: children must be informed promptly – in writing and orally, by procedures appropriate to their age, understanding, and intellectual ability, in a simple language which they understand – about the charges against them, the conduct of the proceedings and their rights.

    Right to mandatory assistance by a lawyer: a lawyer must assist children at every stage in the proceedings. The right to be assisted by a lawyer cannot be waived.

    Right to an individual assessment: this assessment must (i) take particular account of the personality and maturity of the child, its family, economic and social background, its living environment and any specific vulnerabilities; (ii) take place at the earliest appropriate stage in the proceedings and in any event before indictment or the ordering of measures involving deprivation of liberty, except where this is impossible; (iii) establish and record such information about the individual characteristics and circumstances of the child as might be of use to the competent authority; (iv) be carried out by qualified persons.

    Right to medical examination: where a child has been deprived of liberty, where the proceedings so require, or where it is in the best interests of the child, the child must have access without delay to a medical examination and medical care in order to evaluate, protect and, where necessary, improve the health and well-being of the child. 

    Questioning: the questioning of children must carried out in a manner that takes account of their age, level of maturity and any other needs determined during the individual assessment conducted

    Right to liberty: children may be deprived of liberty before their conviction only as a measure of last resort, ensuring in every case respect for the human dignity and the rights of the child in custody. Due account shall be taken of the age, individual situation and personality of the child and the particular circumstances under which the offence was committed. Every child deprived of liberty shall have the right to challenge the legality of the deprivation of liberty before a court or other competent, independent and impartial authority. Children placed in provisional detention must be kept separately from adults and convicted children.

    Right to specific treatment: arrests of children must be carried out on the basis of procedures and with safeguards appropriate to the child’s age and degree of maturity. Once arrested the child must have the right to meet the holder of the parental responsibility or another appropriate adult promptly and in any event prior to questioning.

    During the period of deprivation of liberty, Member States must take all appropriate measures to: (i) preserve the health and physical and mental development of the child, (ii) protect the dignity and identity of the child (iii) ensure that the special requirements of those children with physical, sensory, and learning disabilities are provided for, (iv) ensure the freedom of the child to express his or her religion or belief; (v) ensure that independent inspections are carried out on a regular basis to check the state of the detention facilities and the treatment of detainees.

    Right of children to appear in person at, and take part in, the trial: children must be entitled to be present and to participate in the trial and shall take all necessary steps to enable them to participate fully, including by giving them the opportunity to be heard and to express their views.

    Remedies: suspected or accused children in criminal proceedings, as well as children subject to European arrest warrant proceedings, must have an effective remedy under national law in the event of a breach of their rights under the Directive.

    Non-discrimination: Member States shall: (i) respect and guarantee the rights set out in the Directive as regards any child within their jurisdiction without discrimination of any kind; (ii) promote training of all the professionals involved in the administration of juvenile justice, specifically in the light of particularly vulnerable groups, such as street children, children belonging to racial, ethnic, religious or linguistic minorities, migrant children, indigenous children, girls, children with disabilities.

    Derogations: the committee considered that in general, derogations should be allowed only on the basis of assessments of the best interests of the child.

other/0/commissioner
Old
REDING Viviane
New
JOUROVÁ Věra
activities/4
date
2015-02-05T00:00:00
body
EP
type
Vote in committee, 1st reading/single reading
committees
activities/5
date
2015-02-12T00:00:00
docs
url: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?type=REPORT&mode=XML&reference=A8-2015-0020&language=EN type: Committee report tabled for plenary, 1st reading/single reading title: A8-0020/2015
body
EP
committees
type
Committee report tabled for plenary, 1st reading/single reading
activities/6
date
2015-09-07T00:00:00
body
EP
type
Indicative plenary sitting date, 1st reading/single reading
procedure/Modified legal basis
Rules of Procedure of the European Parliament EP 150
procedure/stage_reached
Old
Awaiting committee decision
New
Awaiting Parliament 1st reading / single reading / budget 1st stage
activities/1/committees/2/shadows/3/mepref
Old
545fbdc8d1d1c57505000000
New
4f1ac952b819f25efd00012c
activities/3/committees/2/shadows/3/mepref
Old
545fbdc8d1d1c57505000000
New
4f1ac952b819f25efd00012c
committees/2/shadows/3/mepref
Old
545fbdc8d1d1c57505000000
New
4f1ac952b819f25efd00012c
activities/1/committees/2/shadows
  • group: EPP name: CSÁKY Pál
  • group: ECR name: KIRKHOPE Timothy
  • group: ALDE name: GRIESBECK Nathalie
  • group: GUE/NGL name: DE JONG Dennis
  • group: Verts/ALE name: LAMBERT Jean
  • group: EFD name: FERRARA Laura
activities/3
date
2014-10-20T00:00:00
body
EP
type
Committee referral announced in Parliament, 1st reading/single reading
committees
committees/2/shadows
  • group: EPP name: CSÁKY Pál
  • group: ECR name: KIRKHOPE Timothy
  • group: ALDE name: GRIESBECK Nathalie
  • group: GUE/NGL name: DE JONG Dennis
  • group: Verts/ALE name: LAMBERT Jean
  • group: EFD name: FERRARA Laura
activities/1/committees/2/date
2014-07-22T00:00:00
activities/1/committees/2/rapporteur
  • group: S&D name: CHINNICI Caterina
committees/2/date
2014-07-22T00:00:00
committees/2/rapporteur
  • group: S&D name: CHINNICI Caterina
activities/1/committees/1/rapporteur/0/mepref
Old
4de188ea0fb8127435bdc3ee
New
4f1adbe1b819f207b30000ec
activities/1/committees/3/rapporteur/0/mepref
Old
4de188060fb8127435bdc2a1
New
4f1adad5b819f207b3000092
committees/1/rapporteur/0/mepref
Old
4de188ea0fb8127435bdc3ee
New
4f1adbe1b819f207b30000ec
committees/3/rapporteur/0/mepref
Old
4de188060fb8127435bdc2a1
New
4f1adad5b819f207b3000092
activities/0/docs/0/celexid
CELEX:52013PC0822:EN
activities/1/committees/1
body
EP
responsible
False
committee
JURI
date
2014-02-11T00:00:00
committee_full
Legal Affairs
rapporteur
group: ALDE name: THEIN Alexandra
activities/1/committees/3
body
EP
responsible
True
committee
LIBE
date
2014-01-21T00:00:00
committee_full
Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs
rapporteur
group: S&D name: ROMERO LÓPEZ Carmen
committees/1
body
EP
responsible
False
committee
JURI
date
2014-02-11T00:00:00
committee_full
Legal Affairs
rapporteur
group: ALDE name: THEIN Alexandra
committees/3
body
EP
responsible
True
committee
LIBE
date
2014-01-21T00:00:00
committee_full
Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs
rapporteur
group: S&D name: ROMERO LÓPEZ Carmen
activities/0/docs/0/celexid
CELEX:52013PC0822:EN
activities/1/committees/0/date
2014-02-11T00:00:00
activities/1/committees/0/rapporteur
  • group: ALDE name: THEIN Alexandra
activities/1/committees/1/date
2014-01-21T00:00:00
activities/1/committees/1/rapporteur
  • group: S&D name: ROMERO LÓPEZ Carmen
committees/0/date
2014-02-11T00:00:00
committees/0/rapporteur
  • group: ALDE name: THEIN Alexandra
committees/1/date
2014-01-21T00:00:00
committees/1/rapporteur
  • group: S&D name: ROMERO LÓPEZ Carmen
procedure/dossier_of_the_committee
Old
LIBE/7/14673
New
LIBE/8/00269
activities/2/docs/0/text
  • The Council held a policy debate on the proposal for a directive on procedural safeguards for children who are suspected or accused in criminal proceedings. The proposal aims to ensure that children are able to understand and follow the criminal proceedings to which they are subject, and that they can exercise their right to a fair trial.

    It also seeks to prevent reoffending by children and foster their social integration.

    The debate was focused on the following issues:

    • scope: according to the proposal, the directive also applies to suspects and accused persons who are adults, if these persons were children when they committed the criminal offence and the criminal proceedings started when they were children. While certain Member States consider that the directive should no longer apply when the suspect or accused person comes of age, other Member States consider that certain rights should continue to apply in that situation;
    • right of access to a lawyer: the proposal provides that Member States must ensure that children are assisted by a lawyer throughout the criminal proceedings in accordance with Directive 2013/48/EU and that the right of access to a lawyer cannot be waived. A large majority of Member States confirmed that children should not be able to waive their right of access to a lawyer, independently of whether or not they are deprived of liberty. Some exceptions for minor cases should however apply;
    • right to protection of privacy: according to the proposal, Member States must ensure that criminal proceedings involving children take place in the absence of the public, unless, after due consideration of the best interests of the child, exceptional circumstances justify a derogation. A large majority of Member States favour, or can at least accept, the option whereby the directive would not contain any principle on the issue of the protection of privacy, but that Member States should ensure such privacy, taking the interests of children duly into account.

    On the basis of this guidance, the preparatory bodies of the Council will continue the work on the proposal. The Presidency aims to reach agreement on a general approach on the text in June, which will then constitute the basis for the negotiations with the European Parliament.

activities/2/docs
  • url: http://register.consilium.europa.eu/content/out?lang=EN&typ=SET&i=SMPL&ROWSPP=25&RESULTSET=1&NRROWS=500&DOC_LANCD=EN&ORDERBY=DOC_DATE+DESC&CONTENTS=3298*&MEET_DATE=03/03/2014 type: Debate in Council title: 3298
activities/2/docs
  • url: http://register.consilium.europa.eu/content/out?lang=EN&ff_FT_TEXT=3298&dd_DATE_REUNION=03/03/2014&single_date=03/03/2014 type: Debate in Council title: 3298
activities/0/docs/0/url
Old
http://old.eur-lex.europa.eu/smartapi/cgi/sga_doc?smartapi!celexplus!prod!DocNumber&lg=EN&type_doc=COMfinal&an_doc=2013&nu_doc=0822
New
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/smartapi/cgi/sga_doc?smartapi!celexplus!prod!DocNumber&lg=EN&type_doc=COMfinal&an_doc=2013&nu_doc=0822
activities/0/docs/0/url
Old
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/smartapi/cgi/sga_doc?smartapi!celexplus!prod!DocNumber&lg=EN&type_doc=COMfinal&an_doc=2013&nu_doc=0822
New
http://old.eur-lex.europa.eu/smartapi/cgi/sga_doc?smartapi!celexplus!prod!DocNumber&lg=EN&type_doc=COMfinal&an_doc=2013&nu_doc=0822
activities/2/docs/0/url
Old
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/ http://register.consilium.europa.eu/servlet/driver?page=Result&typ=Simple&cmsid=638&ff_COTE_DOCUMENT=&ff_TITRE=&ff_SOUS_COTE_MATIERE=&fc=REGAISEN&srm=25&md=400&ssf=DATE_DOCUMENT+DESC&single_comparator=%3D&from_date=&to_date=&lang=EN&ff_FT_TEXT=3298&dd_DATE_REUNION=03/03/2014&single_date=03/03/2014
New
http://register.consilium.europa.eu/content/out?lang=EN&ff_FT_TEXT=3298&dd_DATE_REUNION=03/03/2014&single_date=03/03/2014
activities/2
body
CSL
meeting_id
3298
docs
url: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/ http://register.consilium.europa.eu/servlet/driver?page=Result&typ=Simple&cmsid=638&ff_COTE_DOCUMENT=&ff_TITRE=&ff_SOUS_COTE_MATIERE=&fc=REGAISEN&srm=25&md=400&ssf=DATE_DOCUMENT+DESC&single_comparator=%3D&from_date=&to_date=&lang=EN&ff_FT_TEXT=3298&dd_DATE_REUNION=03/03/2014&single_date=03/03/2014 type: Debate in Council title: 3298
council
Justice and Home Affairs (JHA)
date
2014-03-03T00:00:00
type
Council Meeting
activities/1/committees/0/date
2014-02-11T00:00:00
activities/1/committees/0/rapporteur
  • group: ALDE name: THEIN Alexandra
committees/0/date
2014-02-11T00:00:00
committees/0/rapporteur
  • group: ALDE name: THEIN Alexandra
activities/0/docs/1
url
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=SWD:2013:0480:FIN:EN:PDF
type
Document attached to the procedure
title
SWD(2013)0480
activities/0/docs/2
url
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=SWD:2013:0481:FIN:EN:PDF
type
Document attached to the procedure
title
SWD(2013)0481
activities/0/docs/3
url
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=SWD:2013:0492:FIN:EN:PDF
type
Document attached to the procedure
title
SWD(2013)0492
activities/0/type
Old
Legislative proposal
New
Legislative proposal published
activities/1
date
2014-01-13T00:00:00
body
EP
type
Committee referral announced in Parliament, 1st reading/single reading
committees
committees/1/date
2014-01-21T00:00:00
committees/1/rapporteur
  • group: S&D name: ROMERO LÓPEZ Carmen
procedure/dossier_of_the_committee
LIBE/7/14673
procedure/stage_reached
Old
Preparatory phase in Parliament
New
Awaiting committee decision
activities/0/commission/0
DG
Commissioner
REDING Viviane
other/0
body
EC
dg
commissioner
REDING Viviane
activities/0/docs/0/text
  • PURPOSE: to establish common minimum standards on procedural safeguards for children suspected or accused in criminal proceedings

    PROPOSED ACT : Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council.

    ROLE OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT: the European Parliament decides in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure and on an equal footing with the Council.

    BACKGROUND: the Stockholm Programme put a strong focus on the strengthening of the rights of individuals in criminal proceedings. The European Council asked the Commission to put forward proposals setting out a step by step approach to strengthening the rights of suspects and accused persons.

    Up to now, three measures have been adopted: Directive 2010/64/EU on the right to interpretation and translation, Directive 2012/13/EU on the right to information and Directive 2013/48/EU on the right of access to a lawyer in criminal proceedings.

    The proposal continues this work and is part of a series of measures on criminal justice which includes: (i) a directive on strengthening certain aspects of the presumption of innocence and of the right to be present at trial in criminal proceedings; (ii) a directive on provisional legal aid for suspects or accused persons deprived of liberty and legal aid in European arrest warrant proceedings.

    This measure also forms part of the EU Agenda for the Rights of the Child to which the European Parliament, the Council of Europe and UNICEF have contributed. It is presented together with a Commission Recommendation on procedural safeguards for vulnerable persons suspected or accused in criminal proceedings and vulnerable persons subject to European arrest warrant proceedings.

    By establishing minimum rules on the protection of procedural rights of suspects or accused persons, this Directive should strengthen the trust of Member States in the criminal justice systems of other Member States and can thus help improve mutual recognition of decisions in criminal matters.

    IMPACT ASSESSMENT : the Commission has undertaken an impact assessment to support this proposal.

    CONTENT : the draft directive aims to:

    ·        establish procedural safeguards to ensure that children who are suspected or accused in criminal proceedings are able to understand and follow those proceedings;

    ·        enable such children to exercise their right to a fair trial and to prevent re-offending by children and foster their social integration.

    The directive will apply to children, meaning persons under the age of 18, subject to criminal proceedings from the time when they become suspected or accused of having committed an offence and until the conclusion of the criminal proceedings.

    Children will have the following procedural guarantees :

    Right to information: the child should be informed promptly of the rights under the Directive. In proceedings involving children, the urgency principle should be applied to provide a rapid response and protect the best interests of the child.

    Right to information of the holder of parental responsibility: further complementary safeguards are provided with regard to the information of the holder of parental responsibility or an appropriate adult in order the take into account the specific needs of children provided that this does not prejudice the due course of the criminal proceedings.

    Right to an individual assessment: such an individual assessment is needed in order to identify the child's specific needs in terms of protection, education, training and re-integration into society, to determine to what extent he or she would need special measures during criminal proceedings. The individual assessment should be carried out at the latest before the indictment.

    Right to a lawyer: the directive aims to ensure mandatory access to a lawyer for children who are suspected or accused in criminal proceedings. It also provides that children may not waive this right. However, there are exceptions that include certain minor offences in relation to general municipal regulations and minor public order offences.

    Right to medical examination: if the child is deprived of liberty, the child should have the right to medical examination upon request by the holder of parental responsibility, the appropriate adult or the child's lawyer. If the medical examination of a child leads to the conclusion that the measures envisaged during the criminal proceedings against the child (e.g. questioning of the child, detention) are incompatible with the general mental and physical condition of the child, the competent authorities should take appropriate measures in accordance with national law.

    Questioning of children: if a child is deprived of liberty, questioning should always be recorded. Such records must be accessible only to the judicial authorities and the parties of the proceedings to ensure their content and context.

    Right to liberty: in accordance with United Nation’s rules on the rights of the child, any form of deprivation of liberty of children should be a measure of last resort and be for the shortest appropriate period of time. Taking into account these international standards, this Directive sets minimum rules as regards detention.

    In order to avoid deprivation of liberty for children, competent authorities should take any alternative measures to deprivation of liberty whenever this is in the best interests of the child.

    Right to specific treatment in case of deprivation of liberty: children in particular should have the right to: (i) maintain regular and meaningful contact with parents, family and friends; (ii) receive appropriate education, guidance and training; (iii) receive medical care; (iv) be kept separately from adults in order to take into account their vulnerability.

    Right to protection of privacy: children should be judged in the absence of public. In exceptional cases the court may decide that a hearing is held publicly after it has taken due account of the best interests of the child. In order to ensure proper assistance and support of the child during court hearings, the holder of parental responsibility should be present.

    Right of children to appear in person at the trial: the right to be present at trial applies to any trial aiming at assessing the question of the guilt of the accused person (both conviction and acquittal decisions).

    European arrest warrant proceedings: the proposal applies to children subject to proceedings pursuant to Framework Decision 2002/584/JHA from the time they are arrested in the executing State. The competent authorities in executing Member States shall apply the rights set out in the directive, which will promote mutual trust and mutual recognition.

activities/0/docs/0/celexid
CELEX:52013PC0822:EN
activities/0/docs/0/url
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/smartapi/cgi/sga_doc?smartapi!celexplus!prod!DocNumber&lg=EN&type_doc=COMfinal&an_doc=2013&nu_doc=0822
activities/0/docs/1
url
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=SWD:2013:0480:FIN:EN:PDF
type
Document attached to the procedure
title
SWD(2013)0480
activities/0/docs/2
url
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=SWD:2013:0481:FIN:EN:PDF
type
Document attached to the procedure
title
SWD(2013)0481
activities/0/docs/3
url
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=SWD:2013:0492:FIN:EN:PDF
type
Document attached to the procedure
title
SWD(2013)0492
activities
  • date: 2013-11-27T00:00:00 docs: type: Legislative proposal published title: COM(2013)0822 body: EC commission: type: Legislative proposal
committees
  • body: EP responsible: False committee_full: Legal Affairs committee: JURI
  • body: EP responsible: True committee_full: Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs committee: LIBE
links
European Commission
other
    procedure
    reference
    2013/0408(COD)
    instrument
    Directive
    legal_basis
    Treaty on the Functioning of the EU TFEU 082-p2
    stage_reached
    Preparatory phase in Parliament
    summary
    See also Framework Decision 2002/584/JHA
    subtype
    Legislation
    title
    Criminal proceedings: procedural safeguards for children suspected or accused
    type
    COD - Ordinary legislative procedure (ex-codecision procedure)
    subject