Detention, judicial control and preventive arrest are different preventive measures. They differ in who orders them, how they affect freedom and what conditions must be met. None of them constitute a conviction: guilt is established by a final judicial decision.

General conditions

According to Article 202 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, preventive measures may be taken if there are evidence or reliable indications that there is reasonable suspicion that the person has committed an offense and the measure is necessary for the proper conduct of the proceedings, to prevent absconding or to prevent another offense. The measure must be proportionate to the severity of the charge and necessary for the purpose pursued. Each measure also has its own conditions.

Detention: maximum 24 hours

The detention may be ordered during the criminal investigation by the investigative body or the prosecutor. It lasts no more than 24 hours, with the exceptions provided by law. Before the measure is taken, the suspect or defendant is heard in the presence of an attorney chosen or appointed ex officio and must be informed about the right to an attorney and the right not to give statements, apart from identifying data. He or she is informed of the crime for which he or she is suspected and the reasons for the detention.

The detention is a short-term measure, ordered by an order. It does not automatically mean that preventive arrest will follow.

Judicial control: freedom with obligations

Judicial control is a preventive measure that does not deprive the person of liberty. It can be ordered by the prosecutor during the criminal investigation, and by the competent judge in the preliminary hearing or during the trial. The person must comply with the obligations established in the act by which the measure was taken: for example, to appear when summoned, to announce a change of residence and to appear at the designated police body. Contact bans, travel bans, or the exercise of an activity may also be imposed under the law.

Violation of obligations does not automatically lead to arrest. If the obligations are violated with bad faith or other legal conditions are met, the measure can be replaced with house arrest or preventive arrest. Read carefully the exact obligations and keep the evidence that you have fulfilled them.

Preventive arrest: a measure of deprivation of liberty

Preventive arrest can only be ordered by a judge if the legal conditions are met and one of the cases provided for in Article 223 of the Code of Criminal Procedure exists, such as the risk of absconding, influencing witnesses, or, under the law, the danger to public order. During the criminal investigation, the judge of rights and liberties may initially order the arrest for a maximum of 30 days. In the preliminary chamber and during the trial, the competence lies with the judge of the preliminary chamber, that is, the court, according to the legal stages and deadlines.

Preventive arrest must be specifically justified. The court verifies whether the grounds persist and whether a less severe measure could achieve the intended purpose. The measure can be challenged according to the applicable procedure.

The difference in a nutshell

  • Detention: available to the criminal investigation body or prosecutor in the criminal investigation, for a maximum of 24 hours;
  • Judicial control: the person remains in freedom, with obligations and restrictions established by the competent judicial body;
  • Preventive arrest: imprisonment ordered by the judge, only in the cases and under the conditions of the law.

Consult The Code of Criminal Procedure, especially Articles 202–223. If you have been detained or received judicial supervision obligations, check immediately the deadline and the way to contest them together with a lawyer. For assistance, see the page Criminal lawyer Bucharest.