Currently, the Criminal Procedure Code of the Russian Federation

[tanjimajuha20]

The draft federal law No. 232773-8 "On Amendments to the Criminal Procedure Code of the Russian Federation" is aimed at optimizing the judicial stage of criminal proceedings through the use of modern digital platforms and technologies, increasing the accessibility of justice and the level of protection of citizens' rights.

provides for the use of videoconferencing germany cell phone number list systems (VCS) and electronic documents in criminal proceedings. Thus, the use of VCS by the court of first instance is possible only for questioning a witness and a victim, as well as for the participation of the defendant in court hearings on terrorist cases in exceptional cases in order to ensure the safety of participants in criminal proceedings. In addition, in the appellate and cassation instances, by decision of the court, a convicted person held in custody may also participate in a court hearing via VCS. When considering issues related to the execution of a sentence, the convicted person, the victim and his representative may participate in the court hearing using VCS. The Criminal Procedure Code of the Russian Federation allows the execution of procedural documents electronically.

"In the context of the development of digital technologies and their active implementation in all spheres of life, including the system of providing public services, there is a need to expand the possibilities of using technologies for remote participation in criminal proceedings," the explanatory note to the bill says. "Electronic legally significant document flow will speed up the delivery of notifications to participants in criminal proceedings, simplify the procedure for filing petitions, applications and other documents to the court, and reduce the procedural costs of the parties. Expanded use of videoconferencing systems will ensure the right to participate in a court hearing for persons who cannot personally participate in it, in particular due to the impossibility of traveling to the location of the court."

According to statistics from the Judicial Department of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation for the period 2018-2020, the VKS was used in the consideration of 329,569 criminal cases at first instance.

The draft law provides for the following innovations: the possibility of participation via VKS in a court hearing of any instance for all participants in criminal proceedings (defendant (accused, suspect), convicted person, their representatives, witness, victim, civil plaintiff and defendant, expert, specialist, prosecutor, private prosecutor. The use of VKS will also be possible during off-site court hearings. Verification of the identity of citizens participating in the hearing via VKS will be assigned to an official or the court. The issue of a person's participation in a court hearing via VKS will be decided by the court on its own initiative or at the request of the relevant person. At the same time, the participation of a defendant in a court hearing by using VKS is not allowed when considering a criminal case with the participation of jurors.