Keyword: «pre-investigation review»

The article examines the problems of complying with the procedural time limits for the pre-investigation review of crime reports established by Article 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code of the Russian Federation and their impact on the rights of participants in criminal proceedings. The causes of delays in meeting these time limits are analyzed, and proposals for simply extending them or introducing a “reasonable time” standard are criticized as creating opportunities for abuse. The author proposes targeted amendments to Article 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code of the Russian Federation: allowing extension of the time limit up to 90 days only for particularly complex expert examinations, limiting additional review to 30 days, and introducing a multi-level system for approving repeated decisions refusing to initiate a criminal case.