PROBLEMATIC ISSUES OF ADMISSIBILITY OF EVIDENCE WHEN DETERMINING OR CHANGING JURISDICTION

Abstract

The article notes that the investigative (detective) actions have always been and remain the tools of an investigation activity in criminal proceedings, and they are used to form judicial evidence. The authors analyze the provisions of the applicable law, investigative and judicial procedure regarding the determination of admissibility of evidence obtained during the investigation of criminal offences, and in case of changes of jurisdiction of the pre-trial investigation authority. The authors analyze the opinion of scientists regarding the term “due diligence” that should comply with the provisions of the criminal procedural law. The author pays attention to the due diligence in the process of collecting evidence, which is one of the procedural guarantees of ensuring the legality of a criminal proceeding. The author states the inadmissibility of evidence if it was obtained by the unauthorized investigator or in case of incorrect determination of jurisdiction by the prosecutor. It is noted that, according to the explanations of the Supreme Court, the compliance with due diligence procedure is not a final goal, rather an important condition for gaining the results of a criminal proceeding defined by the legislator as a priority: protection of an individual, society and state against any criminal offense, protection of human rights and freedom, prompt and efficient detection of criminal offences and fair trial. The authors emphasize that the prosecutor’s decision on addressing the trial to another pre-trial investigation authority, its substantiation and reasoning should be the subject of court examination in each criminal proceeding, which is performed taking into account specific circumstances. The results of such a study should be the ground for further evaluation of evidence obtained as a result of such a pre-trial investigation in terms of its admissibility. The authors propose to recognize evidence as obviously inadmissible if it was obtained as a result of violation by the prosecutor of the procedure for determining of changing jurisdiction.