Prosecutors: a key element of the Czech legal system

Chapters of the article

• Competence of criminal prosecutors in criminal proceedings
• Competence of prosecutors in the non-criminal field
• Complaint and review of the prosecutor’s actions
• Substantive and local jurisdiction of prosecutors
• Competence of public prosecutors

Competence of criminal prosecutors in criminal proceedings

The prosecutor’s office is a key body in criminal proceedings, whose main role is enshrined in the Constitution of the Czech Republic. Although the Law on the Prosecutor’s Office defines this role briefly, it refers to the Criminal Procedure Code, which specifies the specific powers and duties of prosecutors.

The prosecutor has powers at all stages of criminal proceedings. Above all, he dominates the preparatory proceedings. Here he or she supervises compliance with the law, can give instructions to the police authorities, intervene in the investigation and decide on key steps such as filing charges, discontinuing or suspending the prosecution.

In addition, the public prosecutor decides on interference with personal rights and can order various investigative actions such as searches, monitoring of parcels or seizure of property. He or she also has specific powers in pre-trial and summary proceedings, such as filing a motion for punishment or deciding to adjourn a case.

All of these powers serve to enable the public prosecutor to effectively supervise the conduct of criminal proceedings and ensure that justice is done.

The public prosecutor plays a key role in criminal proceedings, starting with the filing of the indictment, which enables the court to initiate proceedings. He is present at the main trial, where he presents the prosecution case and has the opportunity to propose evidence. The public prosecutor is also the only one who can initiate the negotiation of a plea bargain and subsequently submit the plea bargain to the court for approval.

He or she has the right to appeal or complain against decisions of the court, even against the defendant. In specific cases, such as juvenile proceedings, the public prosecutor must always be present. He can also initiate retrial and decide on diversions in pre-trial proceedings, such as conditional discontinuance of prosecution or approval of a settlement.

The two most important areas in which the public prosecutor is active are:

• criminal proceedings pending indictment – where the prosecutor supervises compliance with the law and can decide on detention. He also investigates crimes committed by members of the General Inspectorate of Security Forces, BIS, Military Intelligence or Military Police, and the Office for Foreign Relations and Information.
• proceedings before the court – where he acts as a prosecutor. He or she files an indictment, or a motion for punishment, or a motion for a plea bargain. In court proceedings, the public prosecutor is essentially a party. Here his role is to be very active. He or she presents the indictment and the closing argument, proposes evidence and intervenes in the taking of evidence. He or she is the only one who can appeal against (but possibly also in favour of) the defendant, the interested party and the victim.

Competence of the public prosecutor in non-criminal matters

In addition to criminal matters, the public prosecutor’s office also has an important role in non-criminal matters. This includes the protection of the public interest in various legal proceedings and the supervision of the observance of rights in places where personal liberty is restricted.

In practice, this means that the public prosecutor can, for example, initiate proceedings in matters of custody of minors, protection against domestic violence or on the issue of legal capacity. He can also intervene in cases where it is necessary to protect persons held in institutional care or to ensure that trials are conducted fairly. The Public Prosecution Service also has the power to monitor compliance with the law in prisons and other similar establishments.

Prosecutors thus play an important role not only in criminal proceedings but also in the protection of rights and justice more broadly. For example, they can bring an action to invalidate a contract for the transfer of property if the legal rules have not been followed, or intervene in cases where there is a need to protect children or vulnerable people. These prosecutorial activities are important for ensuring justice and protecting the public interest in the Czech Republic.

Complaint and review of the prosecutor’s actions

Under the Criminal Procedure Code, if an accused person or victim suspects that there has been a delay in the activities of the public prosecutor, he or she may submit a request for a review of the public prosecutor’s actions. The prosecutor of the immediately higher prosecutor’s office is competent to deal with the request.

The Act on Public Prosecution then allows anyone to lodge a complaint about delays in the performance of the tasks of the public prosecutor’s office, or about improper conduct of public prosecutors and other employees of the public prosecutor’s office. The chief prosecutor, who is superior to the prosecutor against whom the complaint is directed, is competent to deal with the complaint.

Substantive and local jurisdiction of the public prosecutor’s office

The jurisdiction of the public prosecutor’s office is determined by the jurisdiction of the court with which it cooperates. In the case of local jurisdiction, the place where the offence was committed is decisive. If the place of the crime cannot be ascertained, or if the crime was committed abroad, the case is dealt with by the court in the area where the accused lives, works or where the crime was discovered.

In terms of jurisdiction, the district prosecutor’s office deals with most criminal cases in the first instance. the regional prosecutor’s offices deal with more serious crimes, such as murder, human trafficking or economic crimes involving large financial losses. For crimes affecting the financial interests of the European Union, these cases fall under the European Public Prosecutor’s Office.

The Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office focuses on even more serious crimes, such as terrorist attacks or crimes against peace, and on economic crimes with very high damages of more than CZK 150 million.

Competence of public prosecutors

The public prosecutor’s office in the Czech Republic operates at several levels, similar to the courts with which it cooperates.

The district prosecutor’s office is responsible for cases that are dealt with by the district courts, i.e. mostly minor crimes. Here, prosecutors represent the state in court proceedings and are in charge of filing indictments. In Prague and Brno, this role is taken over by the district and city prosecutors.

Regional prosecutors deal with more complex and serious cases, which are dealt with by regional courts. In addition to representing the state in court proceedings, they also supervise the work of district prosecutors and can review the decisions of district courts.

The Chief Public Prosecutors are in charge of cases handled by the High Courts in Prague and Olomouc. They specialise in serious economic and financial crime and supervise the work of regional prosecutors’ offices.

The Supreme State Prosecutor’s Office, headquartered in Brno, is the top institution of the prosecution system in the Czech Republic. It oversees all lower levels of prosecution, issues opinions on the interpretation of laws and unifies legal practice. It is also responsible for international cooperation in the field of justice, for example in the framework of Eurojust, which is an organisation that cooperates on criminal matters between the countries of the European Union.

This system ensures that each level of prosecution has clearly defined roles and responsibilities, which allows justice to function effectively in the country.