Brussels, 17/07/2015 (Agence Europe) - That a court has not taken a decision on the execution of a European arrest warrant within the time limit does not preclude the continued holding of the requested person in custody, though supervised release must be ordered if the duration of the custody is excessive, the Court of Justice of the EU ruled on Thursday 16 July.
EU law relating to the European arrest warrant and surrender procedures between member states (framework decision 2002/584/JHA) states that a decision on the execution of the European arrest warrant is to be taken within 60 days after the arrest, with a possible extension of an additional 30 days. What happens, however, if these timescales are not met? Should the person be kept in detention or released? These were the two questions put to the Court of Justice by the Irish High Court.
In its ruling (case C-237/15), the Court takes the view that national authorities are required to continue the execution procedure for the warrant and to take a decision on its execution, even where the time-limits prescribed have expired. To abandon the procedure in cases where the time-limits have expired would adversely affect the objective of accelerating and simplifying judicial cooperation and encourage delaying tactics. The requested person must, therefore, remain in custody.
However, detention in such circumstances must be in line with the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights. Thus, national authorities must ensure that the total length of time in custody is not excessive and determine, in particular, the reasons in each case for not complying with the time limits, including the possible failure to act on the part of the authorities of the member states concerned. Also to be taken into account are the sentence potentially faced by the requested person or delivered in his/her regard and the risk of that person absconding. The time in custody must not, ultimately, greatly exceed the time limits set by the framework decision. (Jan Kordys)