The judicial police, judiciary police, or justice police are (depending on both country and legal system) either a branch, separate police agency or type of duty performed by law enforcement structures in a country. The term judiciary police is mostly a functional title, a role which is assumed by elements of the larger police force who act under direct guidance of the prosecutor. They exist primarily to provide evidence to the prosecutor. They can arrest and interrogate suspects, conduct lineups, question witnesses, and even interrogate non-suspects.[1]
Types
In civil law systems, it is common for judiciary police to be a separate police structure from internal affairs police structure, but they can overlap in duties and competencies.
In some cases, the judicial police secure enforcement of non-criminal judicial decisions, such as providing physical security to judicial enforcement officers (ushers or bailiffs), but that is commonly the duty of normal police. It is common for criminal investigation duties, usually under the direction of a prosecutor's office or an examining magistrate, to be performed by the judicial police branch instead of a criminal investigation department within a standard police force, but it does not commonly participate in other forms of law enforcement, such as enforcement of traffic codes.
Civil law judiciary police are, thus, in many ways similar to the institutes of sheriff or marshall in common law countries.
Judicial police are a functional type of police in France that is responsible for the investigation, prosecution, and punishment of criminal offenses.[2][3]
In Brazil, the duties of the judicial police are the responsibility of the Civil Police of the States and the Federal District and the Federal Police, in accordance with paragraphs 4 and 1 of article 144 of the Constitution.[4]
The function of the Judicial Police dates back to 1619, when the alcaides, carrying out their activities in the towns of the Colony, carried out measures to arrest evildoers, always accompanied by a clerk who would draw up a report of what had happened for later presentation to the magistrate. Later, the figure of the "criminal minister" (ministro criminal or meirinho) emerged, who in his districts mixed the roles of judge and police officer, keeping the peace, carrying out investigations, and ordering the arrest of criminals.
During the imperial government, it was the delegado[a] of the Chief of Police who carried out this function, which was retained after the Proclamation of the Republic in 1889, in the Civil Police of the Federal District and in the civil police of the other states of the federation.
As of 1967, the civil police, under the legislation of the military regime, lost their responsibilities related to uniformed ostentatious policing, which they had been carrying out since 1866 through their civil guard corps. This became the responsibility of the state military police and the municipal guards.
Under the terms of article 144, paragraph 4, of the Constitution, "the civil police, led by career delegados, are responsible, except for those under jurisdiction of the Union (Polícia Federal), for the functions of the judicial police and the investigation of criminal offenses, except military ones."[4] They are subordinate to the state governors, through the public security secretariats.
The investigation of criminal offenses is carried out in the course of a police inquiry[pt] as provided for in the Code of Criminal Procedure. The Police investigation is conducted independently, exclusively by the delegado, under the terms of Law No. 12.830/2013, which refers it to the appropriate criminal court after its conclusion. The Public Prosecutor's Office may request additional measures to better investigate a case in order to file a criminal action.
↑Delegado: member of the police force whose role combines aspects of the roles of a sheriff and a crown prosecutor. The delegado receives the inquérito (written report) at the end of a police investigation. The delegado examines the report and decides whether or not to proceed with a prosecution of the suspect under investigation.[5]
↑Altieri de Moraes Pitombo, Antonio Sérgio (2011). "Criminal Law and Procedure". In Deffenti, Fabiano; Barral, Welber (eds.). Introduction to Brazilian Law (1sted.). Alphen aan den Rijn, The Netherlands: Wolters Kluwel. ISBN978-90-411-2506-4. OCLC463642938.
