On the Effectiveness of the Prosecutors Role in Pre-Trial Proceedings: the Position of the Legislator and the Opinion of the Law Enforcer

Abstract

The author examines the problems connected with the position of the prosecutor in a criminal process from the standpoint of the effectiveness of the prosecutor’s work. Specifically, using statistical data on the situation with the legality and the quality of preliminary investigations and the results obtained by other Russian scholars who researched this issue, the author shows that the transfer of investigators from the jurisdiction of the prosecutor’s office to a newly created independent Investigation Committee of the Russian Federation, the transfer of the right to the procedural guidance of the investigation from the prosecutor to the head of the investigation body, revoking the prosecutor’s right to coordinate the decision of the investigator, inquirer, or an inquiry body to initiate a criminal case, and in general the right to do it — all of these, in fact, improved the effectiveness of the supervisory function and, consequently, improved the legality and quality of preliminary investigations. At the same time, the author presents his own view on the directions of improving the effectiveness of the role of the prosecutor in the pre-trial proceeding, which should ensure a general sustainable development of Russian criminal procedure legislation.