Human Rights in Criminal Proceedings

Presenting the case-law of the international bodies dealing with the human rights in criminal proceedings, this book critically examines them. It places emphasis on the European Court and Commission of Human Rights as well as the application of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the American Convention on Human Rights. Interest in human rights has grown enormously over the past fifty years. But while the media focus mainly on dramatic issues such as unlawful killings, torture, disappearances, or free speech violations, institutions charged with the implementation of human rights (as set out in international treaties) spend a great deal of their time dealing with alleged violations that take place during criminal proceedings.And in the future such issues will become even more important as a result of the increasing internationalization of the administration of criminal justice. In this book, the case-law of the most important and influential international bodies dealing with such issues is presented and critically examined by an author who has spent almost a quarter of a century contributing to its evolution. The European Commission and the European Court of Human Rights, in particular, have accumulated a considerable quantity of case-law,which is of particular interest because of its applicability in both Anglo-Saxon and Continental systems of criminal procedure. The law of the European Convention is emphasized because of its advanced procedures and the quality and quantity of its case-law, however the author also gives considerable coverage to the application of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the American Convention on Human Rights. The book will be of interest to all scholars, practitioners, and students of international criminal law and human rights.

This book examines the rights of accused persons in criminal proceedings. The case-law of the international bodies dealing with this issue is presented and critically examined by an author who has contributed to its creation for almost a quarter of a century. The law of the European Convention is emphasized because of its advanced procedures, and the quality and quantity of its case-law. During the last 50 years interest in human rights has grown dramatically. Whilst newspapers focus mainly on dramatic issues: unlawful killing, torture, disappearances, or violations of freedom of speech; institutions charged with the implementation of human rights (as set out in international conventions and covenants) most frequently deal with allegations of human rights violations during criminal proceedings. The increasing internationalization of the administration of criminal law means that such cases are likely to become ever more important. In this book, the case-law of the international bodies dealing with such cases is presented and critically examined by an author who has contributed to its creation for almost a quarter of a century. The European Commission and European Court of Human Rights, in particular, have accumulated a considerable quantity of case-law, which is particularly interesting because it is intended to be valid in both Anglo-Saxon and Continental systems of criminal procedure.The law of the European Convention is emphasized because of its advanced procedures and the quality and quantity of its case-law. The book will be of interest to all scholars, practitioners, and students of international criminal law.