Questionnaire Germany
II.1 Does the prosecution service participate in the preparation of a policy on criminal law enforcement?
It is not quite clear whether a criminal law
enforcement policy as such exists in Germany, and if so, on what level. General
aspects of law enforcement policy, to the extent not regulated by statute (e.g.
sect. 152 CCP), are subject to directives developed on the political level,
i.e., the State Ministries of Justice. Ministries will normally consult with
Prosecutors General on matters of enforcement policy before issuing directives.
Prosecutors General can issue directives to prosecutors in their jurisdiction
concerning concrete matters of prosecution policy, e.g. concerning the
discretionary dismissal of minor cases in particular offence groups (e.g.
setting quantitative limits for conditional and unconditional dismissal in
minor drug crimes or shoplifting) or concerning particular groups of offenders
(e.g. juveniles, mentally disturbed offenders). The following replies relate to
this (limited) aspect of policy-making.
