Features of simplified proceedings regarding criminal offenses in the court of first instance

Summary court proceedings regarding criminal misdemeanors are a differentiated type of court proceedings in the court of first instance. Three forms of simplification of court proceedings regarding criminal misdemeanors are singled out, in particular: 1) with accelerated holding a trial in a court session; 2) without holding a trial in a court session; 3) with holding a trial without examining the evidence regarding those circumstances that are not contested by anyone. The list of documents, the presence of which is a prerequisite for the consideration of the indictment by the court in the order of summary court proceedings, has been determined. The author states that a summary court proceeding without a trial in a court session limits the right to a fair trial, provided for by the Convention on the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms. It has been established, that the features of summary court proceedings regarding criminal offenses are: 1) procedural speed; 2) simplification of the procedural form; 3) greater efficiency compared to the "usual" form of court proceedings; 4) changed structure of the proof process; 5) modification (restriction) of certain principles of criminal proceedings. The definition of summary court proceedings for criminal misdemeanors is proposed. The grounds for conducting court proceedings in a simplified manner have been determined, in particular: 1) legal material ground (qualification of the accused's act as a criminal misdemeanor); 2) procedural grounds: a) the presence of the accused's consent to this procedure for consideration of the indictment; b) undisputed recognition by the accused of his/her guilt in committing the incriminated misdemeanor; c) recognition (non-dispute) by the accused of the circumstances of the proceedings, established during the investigation; d) the presence of the prosecutor's initiative (petition) to consider the indictment in a simplified manne