Law on criminal procedure in Croatia and Slavonia after 1853

Kazneni postupak na prostoru Hrvatske i Slavonije bio je uređen, uglavnom, običajnim pravom sve do 1854., kada je na snagu stupio Kazneni postupnik za Austrijsku Carevinu od 29. srpnja 1853. koji, iako je bio vrlo strog i konzervativan, ima osobito značenje za razvoj kaznenog procesnog prava u Hrvatskoj. Temeljna načela toga zakona bila su načelo oficijelnosti, inkvizitorno načelo, ograničeno načelo javnosti i načelo zakonske ocjene dokaza. Godine 1873. na bansku vlast je stupio Ivan Mažuranić koji je proveo brojne reforme, a između ostaloga Saboru je podnio prijedlog za izmjenu zakona iz 1853., te je na temelju njegovog prijedloga 1875. donesen novi zakon o kaznenom postupku. Tim su zakonom Hrvatska i Slavonija dobile moderan zakon s demokratskim elementima, usvojeno je akuzatorno načelo i načelo slobodne ocjene dokaza, a glavna rasprava je bila centralni stadij kaznenog postupka. Zakon o kaznenom postupku iz 1875. bio je na snazi sve do donošenja jugoslavenskog Zakonika o sudskom krivičnom postupku iz 1929.The criminal proceedings in the territory of Croatia and Slavonia were generally governed by customary law until 1854. That year Kazneni postupnik za Austrijsku Carevinu (The Criminal Procedure for the Austrian Empire of 29 July 1853) entered into force. Although it was very strict and conservative, it is very significant for the development of criminal procedural law in Croatia. The basic principles of this law were the principle of officiality, inquisitorial principle, limited public principle and the principle of legal assessment of evidence. In 1873, Ivan Mažuranić became a “ban” (the title of local ruler). He carried out numerous reforms, and among others proposed an amendment of the 1853 law to the Parliament. Based on his proposal, a new law on criminal proceedings was passed in 1875. By that law, Croatia and Slavonia got a modern law with democratic elements, the accusatory principle and the principle of free evaluation of evidence were adopted, and the main hearing was the centre stage of the criminal procedure. The Criminal Procedure Law of 1875 was in force until the adoption of the Yugoslav Law of Judicial Procedure of 1929