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You will be considered a victim of crime if you have suffered damage, e.g. you have been injured or your property has been damaged or stolen, etc., as a result of an incident, which constitutes a crime according to national law. As a victim of crime, the law grants you certain individual rights before, during and after court proceedings (trial).
Criminal proceedings in Latvia start with investigation of the crime, which is done by the police under the supervision of the public prosecutor. When the police collect sufficient evidence they forward the case to the public prosecutor to bring charges against the offender. Based on the collected evidence the public prosecutor brings the case to court for trial.
During the trial the court examines the evidence and decides on the guilt of the offender. If the court finds the offender guilty it convicts him/her and imposes a penalty. If there is not sufficient evidence to prove the guilt of the defendant the court will acquit the defendant and release him/her.
The following factsheets will take you through the different steps of the procedure, describing your rights during the investigation of the crime, during the trial or after the first trial. Also, read more about the help and support you can get.
Last update:
29/09/2022
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