PROFESSIONAL ASSISTANCE TO A WITNESS DURING HIS/HER INTERROGATION

Abstract

An analysis of criminal procedural legislation has been carried out in order to determine the powers of a counsel when providing legal assistance to a witness during his/her interrogation. It has been established that the legal regulation of counsel's participation in the interrogation of a witness does not allow counsel to exercise the right to professional assistance effectively and does not comply with the requirement of legal certainty of the legislation. Where the procedural rights of a witness are to be exercised directly by him or her alone, professional legal assistance involves explaining the essence of these procedural rights and how to exercise them, as well as monitoring compliance with the criminal procedure legislation by those conducting the interrogation. During the examination of a witness, a counsel shall monitor compliance with the requirements of the criminal procedure legislation, which may be grouped as follows: requirements as to the time, place and duration of the examination; requirements as to the witness's awareness of the grounds for the examination and his or her procedural status; compliance with the criminal procedure form of conducting and registration of the examination results. Effective exercising of a witness's right to professional assistance during questioning depends on the opportunity to consult a counsel both before the first interrogation and during the questioning. The appropriateness of legislative determination of the procedural status of persons providing explanations and regulation of the explanation collection procedure have been substantiated. It has been substantiated that the procedural status of a counsel for a witness needs to be regulated by granting the following procedural rights the counsel: to advise the witness; to ask questions to the witness to clarify and supplement his/her answers; to object to illegal actions related to the questioning procedure; to file a motion on the questioning procedure; to challenge the actions, decisions and omissions of the investigator, inquiry officer or prosecutor concerning the witness questioning procedure.