Article 8 – Fair trial and expediency of justice

3. A court shall prioritise the review of the criminal case in which detention has been applied against the accused as a measure of restraint.

Article 38 – Rights and obligations of the accused

12. Detention as a measure of restraint shall not be imposed on the accused, except when there exists a risk that he/she will abscond, continue criminal activities, exert pressure on witnesses, destroy evidence, or a risk of non-enforcement of the judgment.

Article 85 – Liability for non-performance of procedural duties and for disrupting order in a courtroom

15. When hearing a case on detention provided for by this article, the court shall notify the arrested person of the time and place of the hearing. Non-appearance of the party shall not result in adjournment if the session. The case hearing shall begin with the report of the presiding judge who shall state against whom detention could be applied; shall inform the persons participating in the hearing of their rights and obligations, publicly read the statement concerning the disruption of order and listen to the persons participating in the hearing. During an oral hearing, the wrongdoer/his/her defence lawyer shall be granted an opportunity to present to the court their opinions and give explanations as to the lawfulness of the detention and of the penalty. After hearing the parties, the presiding judge (a judge) shall issue a decree on detention by deliberation in the courtroom. The court that issues a decree shall immediately deliver a copy of that decree to the wrongdoer and also forward a copy for enforcement to law enforcement bodies. The term of arrest shall be counted towards the total term of detention.

16. A decree on detention shall immediately enter into force. It may be appealed by the person, against whom detention was applied, within 48 hours after a copy of the decree has been duly served on him/her. The court shall immediately refer the filed appeal to the relevant court. A decree of the chairperson of a court of first instance or of a judge may be appealed only once to the chairperson of a court of appeal. A decree of the chairperson of a court of appeal, of the deputy chairperson or of a judge may be appealed only once to the Chairperson of the Chamber of Administrative Cases of the Supreme Court of Georgia. A decree of the Deputy Chairperson of the Supreme Court of Georgia or of the chairperson of a chamber (except for the Grand Chamber) may be appealed only once to the Chairperson of the Supreme Court of Georgia. At the Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court of Georgia, a decree of a judge on the breaking of the order shall be appealed only once to the judge who did not participate in the hearing. An appeal shall be reviewed without an oral hearing, and the term for its review shall not exceed 24 hours after it has been filed. A judge reviewing the above appeal shall deliver one of the following rulings:

a) on dismissing the appeal and upholding the appealed decree;

b) on granting an appeal, annulling a decree on the detention of a person and discharging that person from detention.

Article 174 – Procedure for arrest

6. The term of arrest shall be counted towards the term of detention.

Article 205 – Detention

1. Detention as a measure of restraint shall be applied only if it is the only means to prevent the accused from:

a) hiding and interfering with the rendering of justice;

b) interfering with the collection of evidence;

c) committing a new crime.

2. The total term of detention of the accused may not exceed nine months. After this period expires, the accused shall be released from the detention. The period of detention of the accused shall be calculated from the moment of his/her arrest, or if the accused has not been arrested, from the moment of enforcement of a court ruling on the selection of this measure of restraint, to the moment when the court of first instance that hears the case on the merits renders the relevant judgment.

(The normative content of Article 205(2) permitting the detention of the accused on a specific criminal case has been declared invalid if after bringing the charges on this case or after revealing sufficient grounds for bringing charges, the total period of time spent by the accused in detention is nine months within the scope of any criminal proceedings instituted against him/her) – Decision of the Constitutional Court of Georgia No 3/2/646 of 15 September 2015 – website, 29.9.2015

3. The term of the detention of the accused before a preliminary hearing shall not exceed 60 days after he/she has been arrested. After this term expires, the accused shall be released from detention, except in the case provided for by Article 208(3) of this Code.

4. Persons accused in the same criminal case shall be placed separately. The administration of the remand prison shall be obliged to take measures to prevent their interaction with each other. By decision of the investigator, the prosecutor or the court, this procedure may also apply to other accused persons.

5. A convicted person may be transferred from a penitentiary institution to a remand prison or be left in a remand prison after a judgment enters into force if this person is a witness, a victim or an accused in another case.

6. If a court is located far from a penitentiary institution and the removal/transfer of the accused is complicated, under a court ruling, during a hearing, the accused may be temporarily placed in the nearest penitentiary institution or a temporary detention isolator where he/she shall be supervised by the Special Penitentiary Service.

Article 230^1 – Deciding an issue of detention applied as a measure of restraint during a hearing on the merits

1. If detention has been applied against the accused as a measure of restraint, before delivering the judgment, periodically, at least once in two months, the presiding judge shall, on his/her own initiative, review the necessity of leaving the accused in detention. This two-month period shall start from the day when the judge of a preliminary hearing makes a decision to leave the detention in force. When deciding the issue provided for by this paragraph the court shall be guided by the procedure and standard established by Article 206 of this Code.