STUDYING THE ACCUSED’S PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS WITHING THE FRAMEWORK OF PREPARING THE PRE-TRIAL REPORT BY THE PROBATION AUTHORITY AS A STRUCTURED PSYCHOLOGICAL PROCESS

Abstract

The article provides a legal and psychological analysis of the organization of studying the accused’s personal characteristics by the probation authority within the framework of preparing the pre-trial report. The specifics of the formation of the psychological connotation of the pre-trial report related to the study of moral, psychological, motivational, and psychophysical features in the structure of negative personality development are considered. Information about the accused from enterprises, institutions, organizations (including psychologists of such institutions, organizations or legal psychologists) or their authorized bodies, citizens who can provide such information is obtained by a representative of the probation staff by sending requests or during a personal meeting. When preparing a pre-trial report, the probation officer may communicate with relatives, friends, colleagues, other acquaintances of the accused person, as well as receive information from other sources, such as criminal proceedings, place of work or study, place of residence, etc. In the context of the presented work, attention is focused on the preparation of a pre-trial report in relation to juvenile accused, since its psychological component is most evident here. According to the Supreme Court’s practice, the pre-trial report is advisory in nature and cannot be used in criminal proceedings as evidence of the accused’s guilt in committing a crime, but it is necessary for individualizing the punishment itself. Considering that the study of the accused’s personal characteristics by the probation authority is a psychological process, the author suggests that it is necessary to provide training for probation staff at the Centers for Advanced Training in the specialization or program “Psychology” to optimize the preparation of a pre-trial report in terms of its socio-psychological content. Also, the position of some researchers regarding the involvement of psychologists by representatives of the probation authority to study the psychological characteristics of accused and convicted individuals, especially juveniles, in order to create effective programs of corrective intervention for the rehabilitation and education of such individuals is supported.