An interdepartmental pilot project has been launched, within which psychologists can be involved in criminal proceedings involving minors and minors through regional centers for providing free secondary legal assistance.
The aim of the project is to protect the rights of the child, to ensure the best interests of the child and to prevent re-traumatization and victimization during criminal proceedings. The implementation of the project will promote the application of child-friendly justice approaches at the national level.
Children who have come into contact (conflict) with the law, in particular, become witnesses, victims of criminal proceedings, or suspects accused of a criminal offense, need special attention from the State to ensure the principles of child-friendly justice. The involvement of a psychologist in criminal proceedings involving minors will help in the implementation of such principles of a child-centered approach as:
The psychologist is involved in criminal proceedings involving a minor, a minor in accordance with the requirements of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine, and in the statuses defined by this Code.
The mechanism of the pilot project should become an additional convenient tool for pre-trial investigation bodies and judges who carry out investigative (investigative), procedural actions in criminal proceedings involving a child.
The pilot project was introduced by the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine, the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, the Office of the Prosecutor General, the Coordination Center for Legal Assistance, with the support of the Interdepartmental Coordinating Council on Juvenile Justice, NGO “All-Ukrainian Civic Center “Volunteer” and the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) Representation in Ukraine, developed to implement the National Strategy for Reforming the Justice System for Children for the period up to 2023, approved by the Order of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine of 18 December 2018 No. 1027-r.
Officially, the project will start on October 02, 2023.
Which psychologists are involved in the pilot project?
The pilot project involves psychologists included in the Register of Psychologists, who are involved in criminal proceedings involving minors and minors through regional centers for providing free secondary legal assistance (hereinafter referred to as the Register).
Such a Register has been established by the Coordination Center for the provision of legal assistance based on the results of the relevant competition for the selection of psychologists who may be involved in the implementation of the pilot project.
The Registry includes 115 psychologists.
In which regions is the pilot project launched?
Areas identified as pilot projects for the implementation of the project:
How will a psychologist be involved?
The investigator, the investigator, the prosecutor, the investigating judge, the court in the pilot regions will be able to involve a psychologist during working, off-hours, weekends and holidays through the centers for providing free secondary legal assistance (hereinafter referred to as the centers) on the basis of a written request for the involvement of a psychologist by force as set out in Appendix 1 to the Procedure).
The request for the involvement of a psychologist is sent to the email address used to involve the defender in criminal proceedings through the system of providing free legal assistance*.
The relevant center within one working day from the date of receipt of the request for the involvement of a psychologist identifies the psychologist from the Register and issues him an order for the psychologist to participate in investigative (investigative) procedural actions in criminal proceedings with the participation of minors and minors. Within five working days from the day of such participation, the psychologist reports to the relevant center on the execution of the order.
A psychologist may be involved in criminal proceedings involving a child in the following procedural statuses:
The status of a psychologist who is involved in participation in investigative (investigative) actions and procedural actions with the participation of a minor, minor, is determined by the procedural decision of the authorized person in accordance with the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine.
For the implementation of the pilot project, the payment for the services of psychologists will be made at the expense of international technical assistance, in particular, within the project “Providing psychosocial support and ensuring justice as part of the best care for vulnerable children”, implemented by the NGO “All-Ukrainian Civic Center “Volunteer”, with the support of the Children's Representative Office The United Nations Foundation (UNICEF) in Ukraine.
Within the framework of the pilot project, psychologists will be provided with professional support, in particular, more than 100 psychologists from the Register have already undergone special training under the three-day training program “Peculiarities of involvement and role of the psychologist in procedural actions with the participation of the child in criminal proceedings”.
Related documents
Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine.
National Strategy for Reforming the Justice System for Children for the Period Until 2023 Procedure for Implementing a Pilot Project on the Involvement of Psychologists in Criminal Proceedings with the Participation of Minors and
Minors Through Regional Centers for Providing Free Secondary Legal Assistance Order of the Ministry of Justice Law of Ukraine dated 13.04.2023 № 1326/5 “On Approval of the Procedure for Maintaining by the Coordination Center for Legal Assistance of the Register of Psychologists Involved in Criminal Proceedings
with the participation of minors, minors through regional centers for the provision of free secondary legal assistance, the procedure for the selection of psychologists who can be involved in criminal proceedings with the participation of minors, minors through regional centers for the provision of free secondary legal assistance”.
For reference:
E-mail addresses for sending requests to investigators, investigators, prosecutors, investigating judges, courts about the involvement of a psychologist through the centers: Dnipropetrovsk region — [email protected] Zhytomyr — [email protected] Kyiv region — [email protected] m.
Kyiv — [email protected]
Odessa Oblast — [email protected]
Chernihiv Oblast — [email protected]
Ivano-Frankivsk — [email protected]
Lviv Oblast —
Responsible persons for the coordination of the pilot project in the system of providing free legal assistance: Head of the Department for Implementation of Alternative Methods of Dispute Settlement of the Coordination Center for Legal Assistance Irina Bonn Darenko (+38067 94 33 293,) — for
[email protected] [email protected] general coordination of the pilot project;
head of the mediation department of the Western Regional Center for the provision of free secondary legal assistance Yana Melnyk (+38050 900 30 77, [email protected]) — for communication with psychologists and subjects of the request for the involvement of psychologists in the pilot regions (if necessary).
