The Public Prosecution Service and Victim Assistance in Criminal Proceedings

Abstract

This study examines the constitutional foundations of the Public Prosecution Service’s role in providing assistance to victims within criminal proceedings. The treatment afforded to victims has undergone distinct phases: an initial period of full protagonism, followed by one of complete neglect, and later rediscovered in the twentieth century. In contemporary legal frameworks, attention to victims stems from the principle of human dignity and the principle of effective criminal protection, which require the State to ensure the simultaneous and equivalent safeguarding of the defendant’s rights—through abstention—and the interests of society and the victim in the enforcement of criminal law—through positive action. The Public Prosecution Service, as a guarantor of fundamental rights, including in the criminal sphere, contributes to the improvement of criminal procedural mechanisms, ensuring greater democratic participation and stronger guarantees aimed at addressing victims’ needs. Examples include prosecutorial action in victim assistance within the frameworks of plea agreements and conditional suspension of proceedings, in cases of domestic and family violence against women, and in restorative justice initiatives.