Recommendation on procedural rights of suspects and accused people subject to pre-trial detention and on material detention conditions

SUMMARY OF:

Recommendation (EU) 2023/681 on procedural rights of suspects and accused persons subject to pre-trial detention and on material detention conditions

WHAT IS THE AIM OF THE RECOMMENDATION?

The recommendation aims to provide guidance for European Union (EU) Member States to strengthen the rights of suspects and accused people who are subject to pre-trial detention, in relation both to their procedural rights and to material detention conditions, in order to ensure that people who are to deprived liberty are treated with dignity and in respect of their fundamental rights.

KEY POINTS

Procedural rights

EU directives already cover a number of elements of procedural rights including:

This recommendation complements these directives along with the Commission recommendation on procedural safeguards for vulnerable people suspected or accused in criminal proceedings (see summary).

General principles

The recommendation sets out four main principles:

pre-trial detention should be a measure of last resort;
detainees must be treated with respect and dignity, and in line with the relevant human rights obligations, including those under Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights and Article 4 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union;
efforts should be made to manage detention in a way that facilitates the social reintegration of detainees, with a view to preventing reoffending;
the recommendation should be applied without distinction to gender, ethnicity, age or any other status.

Procedural rights of suspects and accused people

The recommendation sets out minimum standards for those subject to pre-trial detention, covering various aspects including:

the use of pre-trial detention as a measure of last resort and availability of alternatives to detention;
the need for reasonable suspicion and grounds for pre-trial detention;
justification of reasoning of pre-trial detention decisions;
periodic review of pre-trial detention;
that a hearing of the suspect or accused person must always be ensured;
effective remedies and the right to appeal;
that the length of pre-trial detention should be as short as possible;
deduction of time spent in pre-trial detention from the final sentence.

Material detention conditions

The recommendation also sets out minimum standards for detention conditions including:

accommodation and allocation;
hygiene and sanitary conditions;
nutrition;
time spent outside the cell and outdoors;
work and education of detainees to promote their reintegration;
healthcare;
prevention of violence and ill-treatment;
contact with the outside world;
legal assistance;
requests and complaints
special measures for:
- women and girls,
- foreign nationals,
- children and young adults,
- people with disabilities or serious medical conditions;
specific measures to address radicalisation in prisons.

Reporting

Member States should inform the European Commission of their follow-up to this recommendation with 18 months of adoption.
The Commission should subsequently present a report to the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union within 24 months of the recommendation’s adoption.

Background

For further information, see:

Rights of suspects and accused (European Commission).

MAIN DOCUMENT

Commission Recommendation (EU) 2023/681 of 8 December 2022 on procedural rights of suspects and accused persons subject to pre-trial detention and on material detention conditions (OJ L 86, 24.3.2023, pp. 44–57).

Recommendation on procedural rights of suspects and accused people subject to pre-trial detention and on material detention conditions

SUMMARY OF:

WHAT IS THE AIM OF THE RECOMMENDATION?

KEY POINTS

MAIN DOCUMENT

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