Information Pack for British Prisoners in Bolivia Author British Embassy La Paz Date June 2015
For how long can I be remanded in custody?
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- What happens when I am charged
- What provision is there for bail
- What happens at the trial
For how long can I be remanded in custody?If detained in larger cities you could be kept in custody for up to 48 hrs. However, in smaller towns this period can be extended up two weeks whilst arrangements are made to transfer you to a prison in the main city. If you were arrested in possession or under the influence of small quantities of drugs, you may be held in custody whilst the authorities gather evidence such as blood tests to charge you as a consumer rather than a drug trafficker. This process can take a few weeks and you could be held in custody for the whole period. What happens when I am charged?Prosecutors in charge of a case will conduct an investigation to determine if there are grounds for trial. If so, trial would be opened and conducted by a competent court upon accusation of the prosecutors. Except when persons are apprehended in flagrante delicto, i.e. when the person is caught when committing the offence, all confiscation of drugs and goods and all arrests shall be carried out in the presence of a Controlled Substances Prosecutor (Fiscal). A foreigner with a small amount of drugs, especially if it is not cocaine, who is under the influence of the drugs at the time of arrest, may be looked upon as a consumer and expelled from the country. Foreigners who do not have permanent resident status and who are found in possession of any type of drugs are obliged to pay a fine, and are immediately expelled from the country. However, this person could also be considered in possession of, or a trafficker in drugs, and be prosecuted if determined so by the narcotics police, in consultation with the Prosecutor of Controlled Substances assigned to the case. Persons arrested with significant quantities of drugs are prosecuted under Law 1008. Police or prosecutors usually permit access to a lawyer (mandatory by law) when declarations are being taken and a determination has been made to prosecute. Statements made to the police or prosecutors are almost always admitted to the court as evidence for prosecution. If the narcotics police (FELCN) and the prosecutor of controlled substances believe that the case before them warrants prosecution, the case is sent to trial. When the records of Judicial Police action and of prosecution are brought to the knowledge of the Court of Local Controlled Substances, they must be accompanied by an application by the prosecutor for the opening of the proceedings, with an assessment of the facts according to the types of offences and a presentation of the relevant prosecution evidence. Rarely does it occur that a case sent by the police is rejected for trial by the prosecutor or subsequently, on technicalities, by the judge. The Court of Local Controlled Substances shall, within 24 hours after having received the records of Judicial Police action and of prosecution with the corresponding application, issue the initiating order, assessing the facts according to its own criteria. They could even depart from the prosecutor’s application in those cases if it can be considered from the review of the records that the offence is more serious. The initiating order shall also include: (a) The formal detention of the accused person or persons present; (b) An order for the arrest of persons absent; (c) A preventive record of goods, (subject to registration in the registers of real rights the Ministries of Aviation and Transport, the telephone companies or the relevant offices or institutions), of all goods confiscated from the accused or from third persons who are connected with the offence or offences; (d) The formal deposit of money, assets, jewellery, shares, securities and the like in a State Bank on the order of the National Council Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Traffic, which shall act as depository or warranty. What provision is there for bail?There is no bail under the narcotics law. What kind of legal assistance is availableA privately retained lawyer can represent a defendant or, if he or she does not have the financial resources to pay a private attorney, the District Superior Court will provide the defendant with a court appointed public defender. The fees of Bolivian attorneys vary widely, and have ranged from US$ 700 to US$ 11,000 per defendant. The Embassy cannot provide a lawyer for a British defendant or advise which lawyer should be selected. The Embassy can, however, provide British Nationals with a list of Bolivian attorneys. The list does not name all qualified Bolivian attorneys, and the Embassy assumes no responsibility for the professional ability or integrity of the persons or law firms who appear on the list. The Embassy is not authorised to defend a British citizen accused of a crime, give advice about legal strategy, or act as the British citizen’s attorney in any way. Furthermore, the Embassy does not cover the cost or guarantee the payment of appointing a lawyer. What happens at the trial?The trial process opens with a hearing for the defendant to give a statement to the Judge of Controlled Substances concerning their alleged involvement in the crime. There are no juries. Other defendants may give their statements the same day, or at subsequent hearings which may be scheduled a week or more later. When the statements have been made and the public nature of the trial is assured, the officiating judge shall announce the opening hearing of the proceedings. When the procedural action has been taken, the proceedings shall take place continuously in successive hearings up to their conclusion within the space of 20 calendar days. The records of Judicial Police (FELCN) action shall constitute documentary evidence. In practice this phase of the trial can take several months, since audiences are generally separated by a week or two or even more. Usually, the prosecution uses the materials collected at the time of the arrest, the statements made by the defendants to the police and the testimony of the arresting officers as its evidence. The defence can question the prosecutor’s evidence, but only if the judge rephrases the question before directing it to a witness. The defence evidence, besides the questions asked by defence attorney, can include clean police records from the United Kingdom and letters of good conduct from civic, university, and religious leaders who know the defendant. Statements of good conduct written by individuals in the UK must be translated into Spanish and the translation certified by the British Embassy in order to be introduced in the Bolivian court as evidence. Usually the defendant introduces this evidence. Upon completion of the phase in which the prosecution and defence present their final statement or recommendations to the judge (this phase is called “conclusiones”), the recommendation of the prosecutor of controlled substances assigned to the case, called the “requerimiento”, is read at a hearing and submitted to the judge. Following the prosecutor’s recommendation, the judge shall declare open the period for final pleas, granting the parties periods of three days to formulate their respective final pleas. That period shall be a single common period for all the accused and shall be computed from the day following notification of the requirement to make final pleas. The lawyer for each defendant has an opportunity to make a final statement called the “alegato” to the judge. Frequently, these statements are merely placed in the court record, even though a lawyer may request a public hearing at which the defendant’s statements are read. 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