Innovations in the Criminal Procedure of the Republic of Azerbaijan: Prospects for the Implementation of Modern Methods and Technologies in the Work of Specialists

Abstract

The importance of the research lies in the fact that digital technologies are increasingly permeating every aspect of human existence, including the judicial system. Information technologies are being integrated into specific aspects of criminal proceedings, such as the seizure of electronic media during investigations, the utilisation of video conferencing in court hearings at different levels, and the submission of motions, applications, and complaints in electronic format. The purpose of the study was to identify the general theoretical provisions of the criminal procedure form of information technologies used to organise the activities of officials and bodies conducting criminal proceedings, collect, verify, and evaluate evidence, control the activities of officials and bodies conducting criminal proceedings, and ensure the security of information technologies used in criminal procedure of the Republic of Azerbaijan, taking into account their current state. Methods of research included dialectical, comparative-legal, systemic-analytical, and logical approaches. The results of the study state the argumentation of the position that at the present stage, it is necessary to create a unified digital environment of criminal justice, including the transition to recording the course of procedural, as well as investigative, actions by means of technical means and saving the results in electronic form. It is important improving the use of electronic document flow between state bodies and officials within the framework of criminal procedure relations and to expand the use of remote forms of procedural actions at any stage of criminal proceedings, including the participation of all interested parties in court hearings. It is equally important to provide the victim with the opportunity to track the progress of a criminal case online via the Internet, from filing an electronic application to the sentencing. It is considered effective for the future to introduce a convenient and reliable technology of certification of a procedural document by any participant in the criminal process instead of its usual signature.