Criminal Lawyer in Dammam Criminal Cases

Legal framework

The procedure in criminal cases, from gathering information and investigation to trial and objection to the judgment, is governed by the Law of Criminal Procedure issued under Royal Decree No. M/2 dated 22/1/1435H and its Implementing Regulations. Relevant provisions include:

• No one may be arrested, searched, detained or imprisoned except in the cases the law provides, and outside cases where a person is caught in the act, arrest or detention requires an order from the competent authority. Detention takes place only in designated places, under a reasoned order that states its period, and a person arrested may not be subjected to physical or psychological harm, torture or degrading treatment. No criminal penalty may be imposed on anyone except after conviction of an act prohibited by Sharia or by law, following a trial held in accordance with Sharia. Articles 2, 3, 35, 37 and 40
• On arrest or detention, the accused must be told the reasons, the right to an agent or lawyer during investigation and trial, and the right to contact anyone they wish to inform, and their signature is taken to confirm they were told of these rights. Article 22
• Every accused person may have an agent or lawyer defend them during investigation and trial. The investigator may not separate the accused from the agent or lawyer present with them, nor seize papers and documents the accused gave to their agent or lawyer, or the correspondence between them about the case. In major crimes, an accused who cannot afford a lawyer may ask the court before which the case has been brought to appoint one for their defense at the State's expense, as the Implementing Regulations provide. Articles 4, 65, 70, 84, 119 and 139
• The criminal investigation officer hears the arrested person's statement immediately, and may not keep them in custody for more than 24 hours without a written order from the investigator. If there is sufficient evidence to support the accusation, the officer sends them within 24 hours to the investigator, who must question them within 24 hours and then order their detention or release. When the accused first appears for investigation, the investigator informs them of the charge, and questioning must take place in conditions that do not affect their free will; the accused may not be made to take an oath, and no coercion may be used. Articles 33, 34, 36, 101, 102 and 116
• If, after questioning, the evidence of a major crime is sufficient, or the interest of the investigation requires it, the investigator orders the accused detained for no more than five days from the arrest. Detention may be extended only by order of the head of the Public Prosecution branch or their delegate, and, where a longer period is needed, of the Attorney General or their delegate, within maximum limits set by the law, after which the accused must be referred to the competent court or released, except in exceptional cases where the court approves an extension by a reasoned judicial order. A detainee may file a grievance against the detention order or its extension, and the investigator may at any time, on their own initiative or at the accused's request, order release where detention has no justification, release would not harm the investigation and there is no fear of flight or disappearance, provided the accused undertakes to appear when summoned; under the Implementing Regulations, this release requires that the evidence against the accused in a major crime is not sufficient. Articles 113, 114, 115 and 120
• The Public Prosecution has jurisdiction to bring and pursue criminal actions before the competent courts. The victim, or their representative, and after them their heirs, may bring a criminal action in any case involving a private right. Anyone harmed by a crime may claim their private right during the investigation, and may pursue it before the court hearing the public action at any stage of the case, even if the claim was not accepted during the investigation. Articles 15, 16, 17, 29, 69 and 147
• A public criminal action ends with a final judgment, a pardon by the King in matters open to pardon, repentance where, under its Sharia conditions, it removes the penalty, or the death of the accused, and this does not prevent a private right claim from continuing. A private criminal action ends with a final judgment or a pardon by the victim or their heir, and that pardon does not prevent the public right action from continuing. A private right claimant's abandonment of their claim does not affect the public criminal action. Articles 22, 23 and 151
• The criminal court has jurisdiction over all criminal cases, without prejudice to the jurisdiction of other courts, and in a place with no criminal court the general court exercises that jurisdiction, unless the Supreme Judicial Council decides otherwise. The court with territorial jurisdiction is the one where the crime took place or where the accused resides, or, if the accused has no known residence, where they were arrested. Articles 128, 129 and 130
• The convicted person, the public prosecutor and the private right claimant may ask for appeal or review of judgments of the courts of first instance within thirty days, and the court must tell them of this right when it pronounces the judgment. They may also petition the Supreme Court for reversal (naqd) of judgments issued or upheld by the courts of appeal, within thirty days, on grounds the law sets, including violation of Sharia or of the laws, a judgment issued by a court without jurisdiction, or an error in characterizing the facts. Criminal judgments are enforced only once they are final, and a detained accused is released at once if the judgment does not convict them, imposes a penalty that does not require imprisonment, or if they have already served the sentence while detained. Articles 192, 194, 197, 198, 199, 212 and 213