PART TWO CRIMINAL PROCEEDINGS
CHAPTER XIX MAIN TRIAL
SUB – CHAPTER XIII CLOSING STATEMENTS
Article 356
Sentencing Hearing following Guilty Plea or Judgment of Guilty
1. A sentencing hearing may be held if:
1.1. an accused pleads guilty;
1.2. an accused has been found guilty of a criminal offence after the main trial.
2. The request for a sentencing hearing is made in writing or in the record after the accused
pleads guilty or before the anticipated conclusion of the main trial. The state prosecutor, the
accused or his defense counsel may request that a hearing be held to present matters relevant
to sentencing. The request for such a hearing by the accused or his defense counsel shall not
be regarded as any admission of guilt.
3. The single trial judge or trial panel may also order a sentencing hearing ex officio to obtain
additional information relevant to the sentence if such a hearing is not requested by the parties.
4. The single trial judge or trial panel grants the request and advises the parties that the closing
statements shall address only the guilt or innocence of the accused.
5. The sentencing hearing is scheduled within seven (7) days of the announcement of a guilty
judgment pursuant to Article 364 of this Code. The single trial judge or trial panel immediately
gives notice of the date and time of the sentencing hearing to the state prosecutor, accused,
defense counsel, injured party or victim and victim advocate or victim’s representative.
6. Following the announcement of a guilty judgment, the single trial judge or trial panel may
order, ex officio or upon the request of the parties, from the probation service to compile a pre-
sentencing report. The order specifies the date for the submission of the report. In instances
when a pre-sentencing report is ordered, the deadline from paragraph 5 of this Article for
scheduling a sentencing hearing commences from the specified date for the submission of the
report by the probation service.
7. At the sentencing hearing the state prosecutor, accused, defense counsel, injured party or
victim and victim advocate or victim’s representative may present to the court:
7.1. matters in aggravation of the sentence, including data from the criminal record of the
accused;
7.2. matters in mitigation of the sentence, including those relevant for the mitigation of the
sentence under the minimum punishment provided by the law;
7.3. a statement or argument regarding an appropriate sentence, either orally or in
writing; and
7.4. any other matters that the single trial judge or trial panel finds relevant in determining
an appropriate sentence.
8. The applicable provisions for the sequence of presentation of evidence at main trial apply
mutatis mutandis during the sentencing hearing.
9. The accused has the right to speak in the hearing in favor of mitigating his sentence.
10. The injured party or the victim or the victim advocate or victim’s representative may also
make a statement during the hearing on the physical, psychological or material impact of the
offence. The statement shall not include a recommendation on the type and severity of the
sentence.
11. In lieu of a statement during the sentencing hearing, the injured party or the victim may
request that a declaration of damages from Article 214 of this Code be presented in writing or be
read during the hearing, and considered in determining the sentence. The declaration shall not
include a recommendation on the type and severity of the sentence. A copy of the declaration
is submitted to the accused and the state prosecutor pursuant to the provisions of this Code, if
such declaration is not part of the casefile. The accused and his defense counsel may object to
the information in the declaration during the sentencing hearing.
12. At the conclusion of the sentencing hearing, the single trial judge then withdraws to render
the judgment, whereas the trial panel then withdraws for deliberation and voting in order to
render the judgment. The provisions of Article 365 of this Code apply mutatis mutandis for the
announcement of the sentence.

PART TWO CRIMINAL PROCEEDINGS
CHAPTER XXI LEGAL REMEDIES
SUB – CHAPTER V EXTRAORDINARY LEGAL REMEDIES
B. REQUEST FOR EXTRAORDINARY MITIGATION OF PUNISHMENT
Article 429
Permission of Extraordinary Mitigation of Punishment
An extraordinary mitigation of a finally imposed punishment is permissible where, after the
judgment has become final, circumstances occur which did not exist when the judgment
was rendered or, although they existed, were unknown to the court at that time, and such
circumstances obviously would have led to a less severe punishment.
Article 430
Persons Authorized to Request Extraordinary Mitigation of Punishment and
Consequences
1. An extraordinary mitigation of punishment may be requested by the state prosecutor, if
proceedings were initiated at his request, by the convicted person or by his defense counsel.
2. A request for an extraordinary mitigation of punishment shall not stay the execution of the
punishment.
Article 431
The Procedure on the Request for Extraordinary Mitigation of Punishment and the
Supreme Court Decisions
1. A request for an extraordinary mitigation of punishment is decided by the Supreme Court of
Kosovo.
2. A request in compliance with Article 376 of the present Code for an extraordinary mitigation
of punishment is filed at the Basic Court which pronounced the judgment.
3. The Basic Court serves the request upon the state prosecutor, who files a reply in accordance
with Article 377 of the present Code.
4. The single trial judge or presiding trial judge of the Basic Court dismisses requests that are
not compliant with Article 376 of the present Code by a ruling.
5. The ruling in paragraph 4 of this Article may be appealed to the Court of Appeals.
6. The Basic Court examines whether there are grounds for an extraordinary mitigation of
punishment, then refers the files together with its reasoned recommendation to the Supreme
Court of Kosovo.
7. The Supreme Court of Kosovo rejects the request if it finds that there are no legal grounds
for an extraordinary mitigation of punishment. When approving the request, the court modifies
by a ruling the final judgment in respect of the decision on punishment.