In short
The investigation is the gathering of evidence and the decision of whether there is ground for a prosecution. It is not a conviction. Preparation of a statement stands apart.
The complaint, the expert, and the statement sessions are a chain.
An appeal is a remedy of law after the prosecution.
The record of the Ankara chief public prosecutor's office is looked at.
Related articles: rights in custody.
A prosecutor's investigation is the stage in which the chief public prosecutor's office assesses the allegation of an offence, gathers evidence, and decides whether a prosecution will be passed to. The police, the statement, the evidence, the protective measures, and the indictment or the decision of non-prosecution are parts of this stage. This text is for general information; the result may change in the concrete file.
Introduction
When news of a criminal investigation is received, many people do not know how the process runs. Understanding the stages of a prosecutor's investigation, however, is important for the use of rights, the protection of evidence, and statements given in panic. The same frame of the Criminal Procedure Code is applied at the chief public prosecutor's offices in Ankara too.
The general frame: criminal law. An example of a complaint and of evidence: the offence of insult. Detention and judicial control: when a detention decision is given. A definite result is not promised.
What is a prosecutor's investigation?
The investigation is the stage, conducted by the chief public prosecutor's office, in which evidence is gathered on whether the offence was committed and who the perpetrator is. The purpose in this stage is to find whether sufficient suspicion for a public action to be brought has formed. At the end of the investigation an indictment may be drawn up, or a decision of non-prosecution (KYOK) may be given.
In the investigation stage the position of suspect is spoken of. When the prosecution starts, the position of accused arises. The police gather evidence on the prosecutor's instruction; the investigation proper is managed by the prosecutor's office. In the investigation stage the file may be kept confidential; the suspect and defence counsel may request access to the file. The scope of access may be more limited than in the prosecution. That the parties act in conformity with the rules of procedure throughout the investigation reduces the risk of loss of a right.
The separation of a report and a complaint
A report is the conveying to the competent authority of the information that an offence was committed. A complaint is the victim, or the legal representative, notifying the will to pursue the offence. On offences subject to a complaint, the investigation does not move on without a complaint. The person who made the report may be in the position of a witness. The time for a complaint is calculated according to the service and the date of the event. An assumption of "I reported it, so an action will be brought" is not correct; the prosecutor's office makes a preliminary assessment.
Routes after the investigation
If an indictment is drawn up at the end of the investigation, a public action is brought. If a decision of non-prosecution is given, an action is not brought; there is a route of objection. If the objection is accepted, the investigation may continue. On offences within the scope of mediation, if an agreement is reached, discontinuance may come onto the agenda. Each result depends on the state of the concrete evidence; a general mould does not fit every file.
The investigation process, step by step
The investigation may move, under the lead of the prosecutor's office, confidentially or with limited transparency. The prosecution is conducted with a hearing before the court. The indictment is the document of passage from the investigation to the prosecution. A decision of non-prosecution is in the nature of a decision in the direction of an action not being brought; there is a route of objection.
Whom does it concern?
- Persons in the position of a suspect against whom an investigation was started
- Persons in the position of a victim of the offence, or of a complainant
- Persons called to give a statement as a witness or as a person who has information
- Family members whose relative entered the scope of the investigation
- Persons who were reported after a workplace or social-media event
The investigation does not cover only serious offences. On offences subject to a complaint, the time for the complaint and the process of withdrawal of the complaint may be decisive. Disputes that look simple may also enter the scope of an investigation.
The investigation process, step by step
A typical course may move with the following stages:
- Learning of the event by a report, a complaint, or a police record
- The prosecutor's office's preliminary assessment
- Gathering of evidence through the police (a record, a witness, a recording)
- Taking of the suspect's statement (the police first, if there is custody)
- Special evidence operations such as an expert, a doctor's report, or communications-traffic records, if needed
- Assessment of a protective measure (custody, judicial control, detention)
- Drawing up of an indictment, or a decision of non-prosecution
- An objection to the decision of non-prosecution, or the prosecution after the indictment
Each step may produce an extra period inside itself. A lack of evidence may give a result in the direction of a decision of non-prosecution; sufficiency of the evidence may give a result in the direction of an indictment.
The role of the police and of the prosecutor's office
The police do operations such as a record at the scene, an arrest, and a temporary seizure. The prosecutor's office manages the investigation, takes the statement, and instructs the gathering of evidence. A police statement and a statement at the prosecutor's office may be different sessions. The suspect's rights should be protected at every stage.
The statement and defence counsel
The suspect may give a statement, or use the right to remain silent. There is a right to choose defence counsel and to meet them. An unprepared statement may make the defence harder at the early stage of the investigation. The statement record should be read before the signature.
The decision of non-prosecution and the indictment
A decision of non-prosecution contains the prosecutor's office's view that it did not find sufficient evidence to bring an action. It is not a final acquittal. An objection may be made in time. If the objection is accepted, the investigation may continue.
If an indictment is drawn up, a public action is brought and the prosecution stage starts. The character of the offence, the evidence, and the identity of the suspect take place in the indictment. After the indictment is served, preparation of the defence becomes critical.
Offences subject to a complaint
On some offences the investigation does not move on without a complaint. If the time for the complaint is missed, a loss of a right may arise. Withdrawal of the complaint may give a result of discontinuance. On files such as the offence of insult, the complaint dimension is often debated.
Protective measures in the investigation
Custody, judicial control, and detention may come onto the agenda in the investigation stage. Detention is an exceptional measure; a strong suspicion and the statutory grounds are looked for. Custody and detention should not be mixed. Judicial control is a lighter measure than detention.
An objection to decisions of a measure is possible. The article on when a detention decision is given explains the general frame of protective measures. Detention is not made in every file.
Errors often made
- Mixing the investigation and the prosecution
- Taking a decision of non-prosecution for a final acquittal
- Missing the time for a complaint
- Giving a statement in panic and signing without reading the record
- Hiding evidence, or gathering evidence irregularly
- Making a post about the event on social media
- Not assessing the right to defence counsel
Caution: statements given in the investigation stage, and the evidence that was gathered, may be used at the prosecution stage. A hurried decision at an early stage may give a long-term result. The text of the official decision and the date of service should be followed.
Related legislation
The Criminal Procedure Code regulates the investigation stage, the prosecutor's duties, the suspect's rights, the gathering of evidence, the protective measures, and the procedures of the indictment and of a decision of non-prosecution. The Turkish Penal Code defines the types of offence. The rules of a complaint, of mediation, and of limitation change according to the type of offence.
In judicial practice, the sufficiency of the evidence, a breach of procedure, and the suspect's rights are assessed together. The same national frame holds at the prosecutor's offices in Ankara too. The local workload may affect the period.
Mediation and discontinuance
On some types of offence, mediation may come onto the agenda in the investigation stage. Mediation is a route that may reduce the burden of the trial if the parties agree, but it is not automatic for every type of offence. If the settlement fails, the investigation may continue. On offences subject to a complaint, withdrawal of the complaint may give a result of discontinuance. On files such as the offence of insult, the complaint and mediation dimension is often debated.
Search, seizure, and communications-traffic records
In the investigation, special evidence operations such as a search, a seizure, interception of telephone communications, or communications-traffic records require a separate procedure. These operations are done with a prosecutor's decision or a judge's approval. Obtaining evidence irregularly may lead to the evidence being rejected at later stages. The suspect and defence counsel may put forward an allegation of a breach of procedure. Conformity of the process of gathering evidence to procedure affects the decisions of the indictment and of non-prosecution.
Access to the investigation file
The suspect and defence counsel may request access to the file in the investigation stage. The scope of access may be more limited than in the prosecution. The possibility of examining the file is useful for preparation of the defence. If access is refused, the ground and the route of objection should be assessed. The confidentiality of the investigation does not remove access completely; a request is possible within the frame of the rules of procedure.
The position of the victim and of the witness
In the investigation, the victim's statement, the complaint petition, and the witness statements form the set of evidence. Giving a statement as a witness may be obligatory; refraining from testimony is possible in limited situations. The victim may follow the investigation process; preferences of withdrawal of the complaint or of a settlement affect the result. Statements the parties gave at the investigation stage may be used in the prosecution too.
The duration of the investigation and limitation
The investigation should be completed in a certain period; its lengthening may give birth to a procedural debate. The periods of limitation of the action differ according to the type of offence. The indictment must be drawn up, or the decision of non-prosecution given, before limitation expires. The calculation of the period is made according to the date of the offence and the statutory regulation. The answer to the question "has the investigation ended?" becomes clear with the text of the official decision; oral information is not enough. After receiving service of the decision of non-prosecution, the suspect should examine the reasoning and assess the right of objection in time. Evidence gathered in the investigation stage may be used at the prosecution stage too; allegations of a breach of procedure and of a right may be put forward at an early stage. Heavy measures such as detention do not come onto the agenda in every investigation; the article on when a detention decision is given explains the general frame of protective measures. Following the period is particularly critical on offences subject to a complaint; on files such as the offence of insult the complaint dimension is often debated. Support of defence counsel in the investigation stage may help to reduce the risk of loss of a right at the statement and evidence stages. The criminal law page offers the general frame; in the concrete file the text of the decision and the date of service should be taken as the basis.
How the police and the prosecutor's office are separated in the investigation file
In the investigation file, a police record and a prosecutor's decision are not melted in the same sentence. The office being in Çankaya does not change the competent authority; this separation is read from the record. The decision is built by looking at whether the decision, the report, the statement, and the evidence note stand in the file.
Conclusion
A prosecutor's investigation consists of the stages of gathering evidence, the statement, the protective measures, and the indictment or the decision of non-prosecution. Understanding the process may help a conscious use of rights. A statement given in panic, and periods that are missed, carry a risk of loss of a right. Every decision taken in the investigation stage may affect the prosecution stage; one should act carefully at an early stage. It should not be assumed that the process has ended before the indictment or the decision of non-prosecution is served. The documents, the dates of service, and the texts of the decisions should be read together in the capacity of victim or of suspect. An examination within the frame of current legislation is important.
This article is for general information; the assessment may change according to the features of the concrete event. The pages of criminal law, a complaint of fraud, and the offence of insult offer an additional frame on the related subjects.