Penal Code Modernization Act

Penal Code Modernization Act

Authors: Angus

Whereas, following the enactment of the Celtic Penal Code, there has been significant litigation under that law;

Whereas, that litigation has produced significant learning and helped identify areas of ambiguity; and

Whereas, the efficacy of our criminal justice system depends on constant maintenance and improvement,

Therefore, the following amendments to the Celtic Penal Code shall be enacted:

Text to be struck

Text to be Added

I Crimes and Punishments Defined

1. 1 CPC (Crime)

1.  This penal code shall not limit a court, or other governmental body tasked with prosecution and conviction, from dismissing criminal charges with cause or adding additional charges against a violator appropriately. The Ministry of Justice shall have the sole discretion to determine and modify the scope and subject of the charges against an offender. This shall not be taken to limit the ability of a court with proper jurisdiction to rule on questions regarding those charges, including their validity.

2. 2 CPC (Power of Authority)

1. The authority to arrest any individual who is reasonably, and in good faith, believed to have committed a crime shall be granted to all Celtic Citizens pursuant an agreement to appear in court for the lawful detention of the alleged offender. The citizen or lawfully appointed official tasked with making an arrest shall sign a “citizen’s arrest form” issued by the Ministry of Justice, or arrest declaration (in the case of lawfully appointed officials with arrest power) stating their intention to make the arrest, the cause, and circumstances leading to arrest.

3. Offenders of any crime shall have the right to appeal their conviction through a court appointed by law, with the right to request appeal by the Supreme Court if originally tried by a lower court or official body tasked with crime enforcement.
4. Offenders and persons arresting another person must appear in court if summoned by the Supreme Court or a lower court.

3. Upon receiving notice of an arrest, the Ministry of Justice shall:

1. notify the arrested person before any further investigation;
2. review evidence of the offense;
3. determine initial charges and proposed punishments; and
4. notify the arrested person, within 48 hours of the initial notice, of whether any charges are being brought.

4. After receiving a notice of charges and punishments from the Ministry of Justice, an arrested person must either file a lawsuit in a proper venue to contest the charges, or inform the Ministry of Justice of their intent to comply with punishment. They may choose to contest only some charges and comply with others. The Ministry of Justice may add or remove charges based on this decision, provided that they do not add charges for an offender who does not contest any charges.
5. In failing to respond to a notice of charges and punishments from the Ministry of Justice within 72 hours of the notice being sent, an offender shall be seen as not contesting any charges to which they did not respond.
6. The act of arresting another person shall be understood as a serious act which deprives another of their liberty; thus this penal code shall not restrict the Celtic People from establishing organizations through constitutionally legal processes to be properly educated and trained to make arrests and be entrusted with this duty.
7. The powers granted to the Ministry of Justice under this act shall be contingent on the existence of procedures to swiftly suspend or remove any Ministry of Justice official empowered to make determinations about charges.Any organization created with the purpose of crime enforcement and imposing punishments other than the Supreme Court or a lower court must incorporate disciplinary procedures to remove officiants swiftly to prevent corruption or perversion of the Celtic criminal justice system.
8. If an arrest is made of any officer of the Ministry of Justice, the arresting citizen shall be granted all rights and responsibilities that would typically be granted to the Ministry of Justice necessary for that citizen to carry out the prosecution of that officer.
9. If an arrest is made of any government official, the arresting citizen may require that the Attorney General appoint a special prosecutor to handle the case. Such a special prosecutor must be equally or further devoid of interest in the case as the arresting citizen. If the Attorney General cannot find a special prosecutor who satisfies that requirement, they may designate the arresting citizen as prosecutor for the case, consistent with the rules governing bureaucrats in the Ministry Act.

IV Statute of Limitations

1. 123 CPC (Statute of Limitations)

1. No arrest may be made, or charge initiated, prosecution may take place for a crime defined by this penal code, or otherwise for breach of the law or the Constitution, more than four two (42) real life weeks after the time of the alleged criminal act or breach. An offender may waive the protections of this section as a term of an agreement with the Ministry of Justice.