Unreasonableness of Reasonable Time in Criminal Proceedings

The analysis of the criminal procedure law made it possible to conclude that there is a historically established tendency for a complete, comprehensive, and objective investigation with the principle of reasonable time. The authors emphasize the lack of legislative consolidation of the concept of "reasonable time", which results in the lack of clarity in making a decision on its violation. The research into practice has shown that there are situations inconsistent with the principle of reasonable time that are not recognized as a violation of it. Having summarized the theoretical views and practices of applying the provisions of Article 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation, the authors identify the obstacles in ensuring citizens' access to justice and ensuring a reasonable period of criminal proceedings and propose the ways to improve the mechanism for ensuring judicial protection of the rights of individuals. They also stress out the need for legislative consolidation of the delivery of a court decision on the deadline for verification of a crime report or a timeframe for investigation in a criminal case. The conclusion is that a reasonable period of criminal proceedings is such a period that does not give rise to a contradiction between the actions of the participants in the criminal proceedings and the public's demand for a timely and adequate response of the court to all abuses committed by these participants, entailing an increase in the duration of the criminal proceedings. As a consequence, the requirement for a prompt, complete, comprehensive, and impartial investigation is part of the "reasonable time" principle.

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