Mr Brügge, a German national resident in Germany, was indicted before the Belgian
courts for the assault and wounding in Belgium of a Belgian woman. Whilst
the Bonn Public Prosecutor's Office was investigating the same facts, Mr Brügge was
given a chance to put an end to the proceedings in Germany by
paying a fine.
The questions in both these cases arose in criminal proceedings for offences committed
by the two accused, even though prosecutions brought on the same facts in
other Member States had been definitively discontinued following payment of a specific sum
determined by the Public Prosecutor's Office.
The ne bis in idem principle enshrined in Article 54 of the Convention
implementing the Schengen Agreement provides that a person may not be prosecuted in
a Member State on the same facts as those in respect of which
his case has been finally disposed of in another Member State. The Court
of Justice must consider whether the principle applies to procedures whereby further prosecution
is barred, by which the Public Prosecutor decides to discontinue criminal proceedings against
an accused once the latter has complied with certain obligations imposed by the
Public Prosecutor without the involvement of a court.
The Court notes that in such procedures the prosecution is discontinued by the
decision of an authority which plays a part in the administration of criminal
justice in the national legal system concerned. In addition, when the accused complies
with the obligations imposed by the Public Prosecutor, the unlawful conduct with which
he is charged is penalised. Consequently, that person must be regarded as someone
whose case has been "finally disposed of" in relation to the acts which
he is alleged to have committed, even if no court has been involved
in the procedure and the decision taken on conclusion of the procedure does
not take the form of a judicial decision. The Schengen implementing Convention does
not make application of the ne bis in idem principle subject to any
requirements of this kind as to form or procedure. Nor is the principle
conditional upon the harmonisation or approximation of the criminal laws of the Member
States with regard to procedures whereby further prosecution is barred. A necessary implication
of the principle is that the Member States have mutual trust in their
criminal justice systems and that each of them recognises the criminal law in
force in the other Member States even when the outcome would be different
if its own national law were applied.
The ne bis in idem principle does not, however, prevent a person who
has suffered as a result of the accused's conduct from bringing a civil
action to seek compensation for the damage.
Available in Dutch, English, French and German. For the full text of the judgment, please consult our Internet page www.curia.eu.int at approximately 3pm today. For further information please contact Christopher Fretwell: Tel: (00 352) 4303 3355; Fax: (00 352) 4303 2731 Pictures of the hearing are available on "Europe by Satellite" European Commission, Press and Information Service, L-2920 Luxembourg Tel: (00 352) 4301 35177; Fax: (00 352) 4301 35249, or B-1049 Brussels, Tel: (00 32) 2 2964106, Fax: (00 32) 2 2965956, or (00 32) 2 301280 |