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Appeal against Judgments Section 404

In document Code of Criminal Procedure (Page 158-166)

1. Appeal may be filed against judgments concerning serious offences, rendered by the District Court as final judgment or in the course of the hearing, by the public prosecutor with the court which rendered the judgment, and by the defendant who was not acquitted of the entire indictment.

2. Appeal may be filed against judgments concerning minor offences, rendered by the District Court as final judgment or in the course of the hearing, by the public prosecutor with the court which rendered the judgment, and by the defendant who was not acquitted of the entire indictment, unless in this regard in the final judgment:

a. under application of section 9a of the Criminal Code, a punishment or measure was not imposed, or

b. no other punishment or measure was imposed than a fine up to a maximum – or, where two or more fines were imposed in the judgment, fines up to a joint maximum – of € 50.

3. In derogation of subsection (2), the defendant may file an appeal against a judgment rendered in absentia as referred to in subsection (2)(a) and (b), if the summons or notice to appear at the court session of the court of first instance or the notice to appear at the court session at a later date was not given to or served on the defendant in person and no other circumstance has occurred from which it follows that the date of the court session or of the court session at a later date was known to the defendant beforehand. The preceding sentence shall not apply in the event that the

summons or appearance notice was lawfully served on the defendant in accordance with section 588a within six weeks after the defendant filed an objection to the judgment in absentia under the terms of section 257e.

4. The judgments, referred to in subsection (2)(a) and (b), which are not open to appeal, shall not be open to appeal in cassation either, unless in the case of a violation of a bye-law of a province, a municipality, a water control authority, or a public body established under application of the Joint Regulations Act [Wet Gemeenschappelijke Regelingen].

5. If at the court of first instance criminal offences have been tried jointly by the District Court, then the defendant may only file an appeal in regard of those joint cases in which he was not acquitted of the entire indictment.

Section 405 [Repealed as of 01-01-1936]

Section 406

1. Appeal against judgments, which are not final judgments, shall only be permitted simultaneously with the appeal against the final judgment.

2. Subsection (1) shall not apply in the event that the appeal is filed against the remand detention order or the warrant of arrest and against rejection of the request for revocation of the remand detention order or the warrant of arrest.

Section 407

[1.] The appeal may only be filed against the judgment in its entirety.

[2.] However, if at the court of first instance criminal offences have been tried jointly by the District Court, then the appeal may be confined to the judgment, insofar as said relates to one or more of the joined cases.

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Section 408

1. The appeal must be filed within fourteen days after the final judgment if:

a. the summons or notice to appear at the court session or the notice to appear at the court session at a later date was given to or served on the defendant in person;

b. the defendant appeared at the court session or the court session at a later date;

c. a circumstance has otherwise occurred from which it follows that the date of the court session or of the court session at a later date was known to the defendant beforehand;

d. the summons or appearance notice was lawfully served on the defendant in accordance with section 588a within six weeks after the defendant filed an objection to the judgment in absentia under the terms of section 257e and at the court of first instance no unconditional punishment or measure was imposed which entails deprivation of liberty for more than six months.

2. In cases other than those mentioned in subsection (1), the appeal must be filed within fourteen days after a circumstance has occurred from which it follows that the final judgment is known to the defendant.

3. Subsection (2) shall not apply in the case of provision of a copy of the judgment as referred to in section 45b of the Surrender Act [Overleveringswet].

4. If the court hearing has been adjourned for an indefinite period and the notice to appear at the court session at a later date has not been given or served in person, then the time limit referred to in subsection (2) shall apply, unless

a. the defendant has appeared at the court session at a later date or

b. a circumstance has otherwise occurred from which it follows that the date of the court session at a later date was known to the defendant beforehand.

If one of these two exceptions occurs, the time limit referred to in the opening lines of subsection (1) shall apply.

Section 408a

If appeal has been filed by the defendant in person or by an authorised representative pursuant to section 450(1) and (2), a summons of the defendant to appear before the court on a specific date in order to stand trial for one or more of the offences as charged against him in the indictment at the court of first instance may be served right away.

Section 409

1. After appeal has been filed, the clerk to the District Court shall send the documents pertaining to the proceedings to the clerk to the Court of Appeal as soon as possible.

2. If appeal has only been filed by the public prosecutor, said documents shall not be sent, or if they are sent erroneously, no further action shall be taken until the appeal has been served on the defendant.

3. If the public prosecutor has not served the appeal on the defendant in person, then subsection (2) shall apply mutatis mutandis, as long as the time limit for the defendant to file an appeal has not expired or, if the defendant has since filed an appeal, as long as the time limit for filing a written document as referred to in section 410 has not expired.

4. If the public prosecutor has filed an appeal against a judgment in which the defendant was

acquitted of the entire indictment, while the judgment was rendered after the summons or notice to appear at the court session of the court of first instance or the notice to appear at the court session at a later date was not given to or served on the defendant in person and no other circumstance has occurred from which it follows that the date of the court session or of the court session at a later date was known to the defendant beforehand, said documents shall not be sent, or if they are sent erroneously, no further action shall be taken until the appeal has been served on the

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defendant in person.

Section 410

1. The public prosecutor shall submit a written document setting out the grounds for appeal to the registry of the court which rendered the judgment. The defendant may also submit a written document setting out the grounds for appeal to said registry within fourteen days after the appeal has been filed.

2. The written document shall be promptly added to the case documents.

3. The defendant may, without prejudice to section 414, indicate in the written document which witnesses and expert witnesses he wishes to have called to the court session. This written document shall be deemed to be an application within the meaning of section 263(2). Section 264 shall apply mutatis mutandis. If the trial at the court of first instance was conducted in a defended case, the advocate general may also refuse to call said witnesses, if the witness or expert witness was questioned at the court session of the court of first instance or by the examining magistrate and questioning said witnesses at the court session cannot be considered necessary.

4. In the event that the defendant does not submit a written document as referred to in subsection (1), he shall submit a written document stating the reasons for filing appeal to the registry of the court which rendered the judgment within fourteen days after appeal has been filed against a judgment of the District Court as referred to in section 410a(1). This obligation shall not apply in the case described in section 410a(2).

Section 410a

1. In the event that appeal is permitted and has been filed against a judgment exclusively concerning one or more minor offences or serious offences which carry a statutory term of imprisonment not exceeding four years, and no other punishment or measure was imposed than a fine up to maximum – or, where two or more fines were imposed in the judgment, fines up to a joint maximum – of € 500, the appeal filed shall be brought before and heard by the court only if required, in the opinion of the presiding judge, in the interest of a proper administration of justice.

2. An appeal filed against a judgment rendered in absentia by the District Court, not being the single-judge division of the Sub-District Court Sector, must be heard, in any case, in the interest of a proper administration of justice if the summons or notice to appear at the court session of the court of first instance or the notice to appear at the court session at a later date was not given to or served on the defendant in person and no other circumstance has occurred from which it follows that the date of the court session or of the court session at a later date was known to the defendant beforehand. The preceding sentence shall not apply in the event that the summons or appearance notice was lawfully served on the defendant in accordance with section 588a within six weeks after the defendant filed an objection to the judgment in absentia under the terms of section 257e.

3. If the presiding judge finds on the basis of the written document submitted or the documents pertaining to the proceedings, including the abridged judgment or the annotation of the judgment, that an appeal hearing is required in the interest of a proper administration of justice, he shall order that the case be brought in appeal before the court under the terms of section 412.

4. In the other case, the presiding judge shall decline to hear the appeal in a reasoned decision given in chambers. This decision given in chambers shall be deemed to be a decision on the legal remedy as referred to in section 557(1).

5. If, pursuant to section 408a, the defendant in the case has been summoned to appear at the court session on a specific date, the appearance notice shall be deemed to have been withdrawn by the decision given in chambers referred to in subsection (4).

6. A decision given in chambers as referred to in subsections (3) and (4) shall be served on the defendant.

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7. In the case referred to in subsection (4), the judgment to which the decision given in chambers by the presiding judge relates shall not be open to appeal in cassation.

Section 411

1. Except for the exceptions mentioned in the law, criminal cases shall be tried and decided on by a three-judge division at the Court of Appeal.

2. A case may be tried in appeal by a single-judge division, if:

a. according to the initial assessment of the Public Prosecution Service, the case is of a non-complex nature and a punishment or measure has been imposed on the defendant in regard of the charge of which he was found guilty at the court of first instance, and futhermore

b. the case was tried by the single-judge division of the Sub-District Court Sector or of the District Court as court of first instance, and in addition a term of imprisonment not exceeding six months was imposed.

3. If, in the opinion of the single-judge division, the case is not suitable to be tried and decided on by the single-judge division, it shall refer said case to the three-judge division.

4. The case shall be brought before the court by referral on the basis of the existing indictment by notification of the date set for the court session at a later date, on behalf of the Public Prosecution Service, to the defendant. Sections 412(3) and 413 shall apply mutatis mutandis to this notice.

Section 377(2), (3) and (4) shall also apply mutatis mutandis to the trial before the three-judge division.

Section 411a

1. If appeal has been filed against the judgment rendered at the court of first instance, but the appeal hearing has not yet started, the examining magistrate attached to the District Court which rendered judgment as court of first instance or the examining magistrate attached to the Court of Appeal may, on application of the Public Prosecution Service or of the

defendant or his defence counsel, conduct a further investigation.

2. The investigation by the examining magistrate attached to the District Court or the Court of Appeal shall be conducted in accordance with Chapters Two to Five inclusive and Seven of Part Three of Book Two.

Section 412

1. Where possible, within eight days after the documents have been transferred to the court registry, the presiding judge shall determine, at the proposal of the advocate general, the date of the court session, except in the event of application of section 408a. Section 258(2, second to fourth sentence inclusive) shall apply mutatis mutandis.

2. The case shall be brought in appeal before the court by an appearance notice or summons served, on behalf of the advocate general, on the defendant, in order to stand trial for one or more of the offences as charged in indictment at the court of first instance.

[3.] Section 260 shall apply to that summons, except that the provisions of section 414 shall be brought to the attention of the defendant, instead of those of section 262(1), in said summons.

[4.] Several cases may be joined and brought before the court on the grounds referred to in section 259.

Section 413

1. A period of at least ten days must have expired between the date on which a summons is served on the defendant and that of the court session. Section 265(2) and (3) shall apply mutatis

mutandis.

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2. If the injured party joined in the proceedings at the court of first instance, then the advocate general shall have him notified in writing of the date on which the case is to be tried at the court session.

3. If the victim or the surviving relative exercised his right to make a verbal statement under section 51e at the court of first instance, the advocate general shall notify him in writing of the date and time on which the case is to be tried at the court session.

Section 414

1. The advocate general and the defendant may have witnesses and expert witnesses, who were questioned at the court session of the court of first instance, summoned or called in writing as new witnesses and expert witnesses. They may also submit new documents or convincing items of evidence.

2. Sections 263(2) to (5) inclusive and 264 shall apply mutatis mutandis. If the defendant has filed an appeal, the advocate general may refuse in a reasoned decision to have a witness or expert witness called, who has not been requested by the defendant by means of a written document, if questioning at the court session is not considered necessary.

3. The victim or the surviving relative, who did not exercise his right to make a verbal statement under section 51e at the court of first instance, may give the advocate general or the Court of Appeal written notice of his intention to do so. Section 260(2) shall apply mutatis mutandis.

Section 415

1. Except for the following sections of this Part, sections 268 to 314 inclusive, 315 to 353 inclusive and 356 to 366a inclusive shall apply mutatis mutandis to the proceedings before the Court of Appeal, on the understanding that, in derogation of section 365a(2), supplementation shall also be made if the appeal in cassation has been filed more than three months after the date of the pronouncement of judgment or in the case of an appeal as referred to in section 410a(1).

2. The Court of Appeal shall focus the court hearing on the objections which have been submitted by the defendant and the Public Prosecution Service to the judgment rendered at the court of first instance, and on that which is otherwise necessary.

Section 416

1. In the event that the public prosecutor has filed an appeal, the advocate general, on presentation of the case, shall explain and clarify the objections to the judgment. As the occasion arises, the advocate general shall also mention the reasons why the public prosecutor has not submitted a written document setting out the grounds for appeal. After presentation of the case by the advocate general, the defendant, who filed an appeal, shall be given the opportunity to state his objections to the judgment.

2. If the defendant has not submitted a written document setting out the grounds for appeal or stated verbal objections to the judgment, the appeal filed by the defendant may be declared inadmissible without hearing the case itself.

3. If a written document setting out the grounds for appeal, as referred to in section 410(1), has not been submitted by the Public Prosecution Service, the appeal filed by the public prosecutor may be declared inadmissible without hearing the case itself.

Section 417

[1.] Official records, reports of expert witnesses or other documents, which were read out at the court of first instance, may also be regarded as having been read out at the appeal hearing.

[2.] If the defendant requests to have specific documents read out again, this request shall be granted, insofar as the Court of Appeal finds that reasonable limits will not be exceeded as a result thereof.

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Section 418

1. The calling of witnesses, who have not appeared, may be refused in the cases referred to in section 288.

2. In the event that at the court of first instance the trial was conducted in a defended case, the calling of witnesses may also be refused if the witness or expert witness was questioned at the court session of the court of first instance or by the examining magistrate and the Court of Appeal does not consider questioning at the court session necessary.

3. If the defendant has filed an appeal, the calling of a witness or expert witness, who was not requested by the defendant by means of a written document, may be refused if questioning at the court session cannot be considered necessary.

Section 419

In the case of section 295, the advocate general shall send the official records, together with the other case documents, to the public prosecutor in the district of the District Court which rendered the judgement as court of first instance, and that District Court shall have exclusive jurisdiction to try

In the case of section 295, the advocate general shall send the official records, together with the other case documents, to the public prosecutor in the district of the District Court which rendered the judgement as court of first instance, and that District Court shall have exclusive jurisdiction to try

In document Code of Criminal Procedure (Page 158-166)