2.The Presumption of Innocence and the Prejudicial Statements
Essential for ensuring a fair trial, the presumption of innocence principle applies…
It is not applicable only to the merits of the case, being also valid for criminal…
This principle supposes that all actors involved in the investigation and trial of…
In order words, it puts the burden of proof on the prosecution, an accused being…
Please note that the exemption from criminal liability does not exclude the establishment…
In exceptional cases, depending on the protected values at stake, the Court has admitted…
The presumption of innocence is therefore a procedural guarantee in the context of…
The prejudicial statements must concern the same criminal offence in respect of which…
This principle is not limited to a procedural safeguard in criminal matters, because…
State agents should never refer to somebody by using negative labels such “suspect”,…
As a procedural right, the presumption of innocence serves mainly to guarantee the…
If believing that a statement made by a public official had a negative impact on…
Please note that “[w]here no such proceedings are or have been in existence, statements attributing criminal or other reprehensible conduct are more relevant to considerations of protection against defamation and adequate access to court to determine civil rights, raising potential issues under Articles 8 and 6 of the Convention
We ask ourselves whose statements are subject to the Court’s analysis. Of course…
But what happens when no criminal trial exists, but a public official makes statements…
Statements made by public officials attributing criminal conduct to a person are…
The Court has reiterated along the time that the presumption of innocence will be…
The Court emphasises the importance of the choice of words by public officials in…
As underlined by the Court in certain cases “[a] fundamental distinction must be made between a statement that someone is merely suspected of having committed a crime and a clear declaration, in the absence of a final conviction, that an individual has committed the crime in question”
The statements made by public officials should be limited to describing a “state of suspicion”…
Two categories of prejudicial statements can be distinguished: statements made by…
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