Part 1 Basic Provisions

Chapter 10 Measures to Guarantee the Presence of a Suspect or Accused and Successful Conduct of Criminal Proceedings

Section 6 Pre-Trial Custody

Article 131

General Provisions

(1) Custody may be ordered or extended only under the conditions prescribed by this Code
and only if the same purpose cannot be achieved by another measure.

(2) Custody shall be ordered or extended by a decision of the Court issued on the motion of the Prosecutor after the Court has heard the suspect or the accused regarding the circumstances
surrounding the grounds for proposed custody, except in the case prescribed by Article 132, Paragraph 1, Item(1) a) of this Code.

(3) The Prosecutor shall submit to the Court a reasoned proposal for extension to extend custody the latest no later than five days before the expiration of the deadline set in the decision on ordering custody. The Court shall forward the proposal to the suspect or the accused and his defence attorney without delay.

(4) The duration of custody must be reduced to the shortest time necessary. It is the duty of all authorities participating in the criminal proceedings and of the agencies extending them legal aid to proceed with particular urgency if the suspect or the accused is in custody.

(5) Throughout the proceedings, custody shall be terminated as soon as the grounds for which it was ordered cease to exist, and the person in custody shall be released immediately. Upon proposal of the accused or defence attorney for termination of custody that is based on new facts, the Court shall hold the hearing or panel session of which the parties and defence attorney shall be notified. The failure of duly summoned parties or the defence attorney to appear shall not prevent the hearing or panel session from being held. An appeal against the decision on rejecting proposal for termination
of dismissing the motion to terminate custody shall be allowed. If the motion is not based on new facts relevant to the termination of custody, the Court shall not issue a separate decision.

Part 1 Basic Provisions

Chapter 10 Measures to Guarantee the Presence of a Suspect or Accused and Successful Conduct of Criminal Proceedings

Section 6 Pre-Trial Custody

Article 132

Grounds for Pre-Trial Custody

(1) If there is a grounded suspicion that a person has committed a criminal offense, custody may be ordered against him:
(a) if he hides or if other circumstances exist that suggest a possibility of flight;

(b) if there is a justified fear to believe that he will destroy, conceal, alter or falsify evidence or clues important to the criminal proceedings or if particular circumstances indicate that he will hinder the inquiry by influencing witnesses, accessories or accomplices;

(c) if particular circumstances justify a fear that he will repeat the criminal offense or complete the criminal offense or commit a threatened criminal offense, and for such criminal offenses a prison sentence of three (3) years may be pronounced or more;

(d) In exceptional circumstances, related to criminal offence for which a prison sentence of ten years or
more may be pronounced, which is of particular gravity taking into account the manner of perpetration or the consequences of the criminal offense, if the release would result in an actual threat to
disturbance of public order.

(2) In a case of Subparagraph b), Paragraph 1 of this Article, custody shall be cancelled once the evidence for which the custody was ordered has been secured.

Part 1 Basic Provisions

Chapter 10 Measures to Guarantee the Presence of a Suspect or Accused and Successful Conduct of Criminal Proceedings

Section 6 Pre-Trial Custody

Article 137

Custody after the Confirmation of the Indictment

(2) After the confirmation of an indictment and before the first instance verdict is pronounced, thenot :
the custody may not last longer than:
a) one year in the case of a criminal offense for which a punishment of imprisonment for a term up to five years is prescribed,;
b) one year and six months in the case of a criminal offense for which a punishment of imprisonment for a term up to ten years is prescribed,;
c) two years in the case of a criminal offense for which a punishment of imprisonment for a term exceeding ten years may be imposed, but not the long-term imprisonment,;
d) three years in the case of a criminal offense for which a punishment of long-term imprisonment is prescribed.

Chapter 31 Procedure to Extradite Suspects or Accused and Convicted Persons

Article 418

Imposing Detention

If the request corresponds to the requirements referred to in Article 416 of this Code, upon the motion of the Prosecutor, the preliminary proceedings judge shall issue a decision ordering custody, if there are reasons for detention referred to in Article 132 of this Code, or the judge shall take other measures to ensure his presence, unless it is clear from the request itself that extradition is uncalled-for.

If the permanent residence or temporary residence of the alien whose extradition has been requested is not known, the Prosecutor will beforehand establish that fact via the competent Entity Ministry of Interior or via the Police of the Brčko District of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

If the person whose extradition is requested has changed the place of permanent residence or temporary residence in the meantime or, with a view to avoiding apprehension, has crossed from the territory of one Entity to the territory of the other Entity or to the territory of the Brčko District of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Entity Ministry of Interior on the territory of which that person had a previous permanent residence or temporary residence or the Police of the Brčko District of Bosnia and Herzegovina shall request the Entity Ministry of Interior on the territory of which that person is currently residing or the Police of the Brčko District of Bosnia and Herzegovina, to apprehend that person and hand him over to it. The Entity Ministries of Interior or Police of the Brčko District of Bosnia and Herzegovina shall in such cases obligatorily co-operate and may not refuse to act on requests for apprehension and escorting of the person whose extradition has been requested.

Chapter 31 Procedure to Extradite Suspects or Accused and Convicted Persons

Article 20

Apprehensions of an Alien

In urgent cases, when there is a danger that the alien will escape or go in hiding, and a foreign state has requested temporary detention of the alien, the competent police authority may apprehend the alien for the purpose of taking him to the Prosecutor on the basis of the request by the competent foreign authority, regardless of how the request has been forwarded. The request should indicate data for the verification of the identity of the alien, nature and name of the criminal offense, number of decision, date, place and name of the foreign authority that has requested detention and a statement that the extradition will be requested through regular channels.

Once detention has been decided on, in line with the provision of Paragraph 1 of Article 418 of this Code and once the alien has been taken to the preliminary proceedings judge, the preliminary proceedings judge shall, upon questioning of the alien, inform the competent Ministry of Bosnia and Herzegovina about detention.

The preliminary proceedings judge shall release the alien once the reasons for detention cease to exist or if the request for extradition is not submitted within the deadline he has determined, taking into account the distance of the state requesting the extradition, and for which the deadline cannot be longer than three (3) months from the day of the detention of the alien. The foreign state shall be informed about this deadline. Upon request by the foreign state, the Panel referred to in Article 24 Paragraph 7 of this Code may extend this deadline in justified cases, but by a maximum of three (3) additional months.

When the request as stipulated has been submitted within a specified deadline, the preliminary proceedings judge shall act in line with Article 419 of this Code.

Chapter 31 Procedure to Extradite Suspects or Accused and Convicted Persons

Section 2 Procedure of Extradition from Another State to Bosnia and Herzegovina

Article 429

Request for Temporary Detention

When there is a risk that the person whose extradition has been requested will escape or go into hiding, the Minister of competent Ministry of Bosnia and Herzegovina may, even prior to the action taken in line with Article 428 of this Code, request that necessary measures be taken against that person for the purpose of his detention.

Data on the identity of the person looked for, nature and name of the criminal offense, number of decision, date, place and name of the authority which has decided on detention or data on the effectiveness of the ruling shall be particularly indicated in the request for a temporary detention, as well as the statement that the extradition shall be requested through regular channels.