What is defendant? Rights and obligations of the defendant in Vietnam

What is defendant? Rights and obligations of the defendant in Vietnam (Internet image)

Regarding this issue, LawNet would like to answer as follows:

1. What is defendant?

\According to Clause 1, Article 61 of the Criminal Procedure Code 2015, defendants are physical persons or juridical persons tried as per a Court’s decision. The rights and duties of defendants as suspects are executed by their legal representatives according to the Criminal Procedure Code 2015.

2. Rights and obligations of the defendant in Vietnam

- Defendants are entitled to:

+ Obtain decisions on hearing of lawsuits; decisions on enforcement, change or termination of preventive and coercive measures; decisions on case suspension; judgments, Court's rulings and other decisions on legal proceedings as per the Criminal Procedure Code 2015;

+ Attend the trial;

+ Be informed and explained about their rights and duties as per this Article;

+ Petition for expert examinations, valuation, change of authorized procedural persons, expert witnesses, valuators, interpreters, translators, summoning of witness testifiers, crime victims, individuals having duties and interests from the lawsuit, expert witnesses, valuators, other participants in legal proceedings and authorized procedural persons to the Court;

+ Present evidences, documents, items and requests;

+ Confer on relevant evidences, documents, items and request authorized procedural persons to inspect and assess such;

+ Defend themselves or be defended;

+ Give statements and opinions, bear no obligation to testify against themselves or admit to guilt;

+ Inquire and request Court presidents to question courtroom participants with the Court president’s consent; engage in oral arguments in court;

+ Give final statement prior to the deliberation of judgments;

+ Read the Court's report and request amendments to the Court's report;

+Appeal against the Court’ judgments and rulings;

+ Complain about competent procedural authorities and persons’ decisions and legal proceedings;

+ Other rights as per the laws.

- Defendants bear these duties:

+ Appear as per the Court’s subpoena.

+ If defendants are absent due to any but not force majeure or objective obstacles, they shall be delivered by force. Fugitives shall be sought;

+ Conform to the Court’s decisions and requests.

(Clause 2, 3, Article 61 of the Criminal Procedure Code 2015)

3. When will the defendant be detained in Vietnam?

- Detention may apply to suspects and defendants perpetrating a horrific or extremely severe felony.

- Detention may apply to suspects or defendants committing a felony or misdemeanor punishable with incarceration for more than 02 years as per the Criminal Code if grounds show that:

+ Such persons commit crimes despite of existing preventive measures against them;

+ No definite place of residence is known or a defendant's identity is unidentified;

+ Such persons have absconded and have been arrested as per wanted notices or are evidently going to vanish;

+ Such persons continue criminal acts or are evidently going to continue crimes;

+ Such persons commit acts of bribing, coercing or inciting other individuals to give false statements or documents, destroying or forging case evidences, documents and item, shifting property related to the case away, threatening, repressing or avenging witness testifiers, crime victims, denouncers and their kin.

- Detention may apply to suspects or defendants committing a misdemeanor punishable with maximum 02-year imprisonment as per the Criminal Code if they continue criminal acts or are fugitives arrested as per wanted notices.

- If suspects or defendants have clear information of residence and identity and are gestating, raising a child less than 36 months of age, suffering from senility or serious diseases, detention shall be replaced by other preventive measures, except that:

+ They abscond and get arrested as per wanted notices;

+ They continue criminal acts;

+ They commit acts of bribing, coercing or inciting other individuals to give false statements or documents, destroying or forging case evidences, documents and item, shifting property related to the case away, threatening, repressing or avenging witness testifiers, crime victims, denouncers or their kin.

+ Suspects or defendants breach national security and detention evidently prevents them from transgressing national security.

(Article 119 of the Criminal Procedure Code 2015)

Nguyen Ngoc Que Anh

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