With Law 5090/2024, significant changes were made to the Penal Code, which almost modified its philosophy as legislation up to now. Since these are radical amendments – some successful and others with room for improvement in the future – it is important to understand them clearly to avoid misunderstandings. Also, keep in mind that these will be implemented in practice from May 1, 2024, with some exceptions that simply confirm the rule. Let’s see them in detail:
1.The suspension of the execution of the sentence becomes the exception
This might be the most significant change in the Penal Code, which will seriously affect the entire legal sector. This is because if someone knew one thing about criminal law, it was that somehow their sentence could be suspended, allowing them to avoid imprisonment as a defendant. This changed somewhat with the new Penal Code, as the conditions for granting the suspension of the sentence became much more demanding for the defendant. Let’s examine them in detail:
- The suspension of the sentence can now be ordered only if the sentence cannot be converted into a fine or a community service penalty.
- If the defendant is sentenced to imprisonment for up to 1 year and has no previous criminal convictions, the court has the discretion to order the suspension of the sentence.
- This means that the court is not obliged but may simply decide to suspend the sentence.
- The sentence can be suspended for a period of 1 to 3 years, known as a ‘probationary period.’
- This means that during the above time frame, the defendant must not commit any other punishable act or acts similar to the one for which they were convicted and their sentence was suspended.
- In the event that the defendant violates the terms of the suspension, the judicial council may decide either to convert the prison sentence into a fine/community service penalty or even to enforce part or all of the sentence.
- If the defendant is sentenced to imprisonment for up to 3 years, the suspension of the sentence may be ordered, but the defendant must serve at least a sentence of 30 days to 6 months (as decided by the judge).
- If the defendant is sentenced to more than 3 years in prison, no suspension can be granted = the defendant is sent to prison. However, here too, the suspension of part of the sentence may be ordered, and the defendant may serve a reduced sentence.
2.The ancillary penalty of deportation of foreigners has been reinstated
This penalty, with its deletion from the Penal Code in 2019, had almost been forgotten, as there were other more specific laws providing for similar measures for foreigners. It should be noted that this is a security measure (i.e., it accompanies a principal penalty imposed by the court and cannot be imposed on its own).
Essentially, for the ancillary penalty of deportation to be imposed, the foreigner (i.e., a citizen of an EU or third-country) must be sentenced to imprisonment (= from 5 to 25 years) and simultaneously, the court must reasonably judge that their stay in Greece does not coincide with the smoothness of social life in general. For the court to make this judgment, it must consider the nature of the crime committed, the defendant’s degree of culpability, their behavior before and after, the commission of the act, as well as whether their stay in Greece was legal or not = if they regularly renewed their residence permit, complied with any conditions imposed on them, whether the information they provided was true/false, etc.
There is a more specific provision if the defendant is a citizen of an EU country and has legally resided in Greece for at least 5 years before committing the crime for which they were convicted. In this exception for the defendant, they can only be deported if they are sentenced to imprisonment for at least 6 years, either for the crime of aggravated theft or for other ‘serious’ crimes (including participation in a criminal and/or terrorist organization). Therefore, from the above, it is evident that if the defendant was not convicted of any of these (highly significant) crimes, they cannot be deported and thus legally remain in Greece.
3.Several penalties can now be commuted
This is a legal option for the defendant that had been abolished by previous Penal Codes but is now in effect. Specifically, the law provides the following:
- Any sentence of imprisonment up to 2 years can be converted by the court into a fine for the defendant.
- This is provided that the sentence cannot be suspended or converted into community service (if either of these can be done, the sentence cannot be commuted).
- Each day of the initial prison sentence will have a ‘price’ ranging from 10 to 100 euros (as determined by the court).
- If the defendant cannot immediately pay the fine, the court may grant them a deadline of up to 3 years to pay it.
- In cases where the defendant, for financial reasons, cannot pay (immediately or at all) the fine, the court provides them with additional options:
- It may grant them a deadline of up to 5 years to pay it in full or in installments (with legal interest, of course, in the latter case).
- Or it may convert the penalty into community service (where we are talking about a completely different legal status).
4.Most mitigating circumstances (now) do not necessarily mean a lesser penalty
Under the previous legislative regime of the Penal Code, the rule was that if the court found that there was a mitigating circumstance in the defendant’s favor, it would impose a reduced sentence. Similarly, if it judged that there were 2 or more mitigating circumstances in the defendant’s favor, then it would proceed to a double reduction of the sentence provided by law.
For example, intentional homocide is punished (only) with a life sentence by law. If the court recognized a mitigating factor in the defendant, then the imposed sentence would range from 5 to 15 years (temporary imprisonment). Additionally, if another mitigating factor was accepted by the court in favor of the defendant, the sentence would be reduced again, meaning in our case, the judge could impose on the defendant a sentence range from 3 to 15 years (the 5 years reduced to 3).
What changed in the new Penal Code is that no matter how many mitigating circumstances there are in favor of the defendant, the sentence will be reduced only once. So, it will suffice for only one mitigating circumstance to be recognized in favor of the defendant, and the rest will remain irrelevant (they may have significance later for parole, as we will see below).
5.Parole has become stricter.
This is also an institution that has ‘suffered’ quite a bit until today from the many amendments it underwent, as well as from the opportunities it provided even to a convict, even with a sentence of 15 years imprisonment, to be released relatively quickly (which often did not have the expected outcomes). Essentially, the basic legislative framework here remained almost the same as the previous one, however, a significant provision was added by the legislator.Specifically, it is now stipulated that if someone is convicted of specific felonies and the total sentence formed by all these convictions exceeds 10 years, then they cannot be released from prison before they have served at least 17 years there. The felonies included in the provision are: the transportation of irregular migrants within Greece by organized transporters, very serious cases of drug trafficking, high treason against the Greek state, participation/formation of criminal/terrorist organization, arson in a forest causing significant damage to a public utility installation, intentional homicide, human trafficking, kidnapping minors, robbery, extortion, as well as any crimes related to rape (such as sexual abuse of a minor, pornographic performances), with the list being quite extensive.Otherwise, parole remains as it was in the previous Penal Code, with its basic characteristics being as follows:
- If someone is sentenced to imprisonment (from 10 days to 5 years), they must serve 2/5 of the imposed sentence.
- If someone is sentenced to temporary imprisonment (from 5 to 20 years), they must serve 3/5 of the imposed sentence.
- If someone is sentenced to imprisonment (from 5 to 20 years) for any of the crimes mentioned above, they must serve 4/5 of the imposed sentence.
- If someone is sentenced to life imprisonment, they must serve 20 years in prison.
6.Driving through a red light may lead to imprisonment
Indeed, in the article of the Penal Code referring to dangerous driving, which therefore encompasses several forms of driving, another case has been added, which is very common in practice. This concerns the situation where a driver runs a red light, and depending on the outcome, the driver himself will be punished for his actions. Thus, the penalty for the offending driver is determined as follows:
- Imprisonment for up to three (3) years if the act could result in a common danger to foreign objects.
- Imprisonment of at least one (1) year if the act could result in danger to a person.
- Imprisonment of up to ten (10) years if the act resulted in serious physical injury to a person or caused significant damage to public facilities.
- Imprisonment of at least ten (10) years if the act resulted in another person’s death. If the death of a large number of people is caused, the court may impose life imprisonment.
7.Path Opens for Temporary Detention of Minors
Until now, it has been difficult (legally) to temporarily detain minors until their trial or to keep them in a special juvenile detention facility, as the law also uses the term. This is because they would have had to commit an act that, if committed by an adult, would be a felony (= carrying a sentence of imprisonment from 5 to 20 years) and also involve elements of violence or be directed against the life/physical integrity of another person(s). Additionally, in addition to the above conditions, the minor would have to have reached the age of 15 to be criminally liable.
The change that came with the new Penal Code is that it no longer requires the act of the minor to be directed against the life/physical integrity of another person or to involve violence in order for the minor to be detained. Crimes traditionally falling under these categories included rape, manslaughter, robbery, bodily harm, etc. This means that now any minor over the age of 15 who commits a felony can be detained temporarily (or permanently), even if it involves a theft of significant value (where violence is, of course, absent).
It is worth noting that for the court to impose the restriction of the minor to a special juvenile detention facility, it must, on the one hand, justify why some milder reformative/therapeutic measures are insufficient in the case. Furthermore, during the minor’s stay in the correctional facility, the court has the option to convert the minor’s sentence to house arrest or community service, if the case allows for it.
8.Increase in Custodial Sentences Numerically
Another innovation of the new Penal Code was that it also modified the sentencing framework generally provided for all crimes. The law thus uses general terms (such as imprisonment, temporary imprisonment, etc.) for each crime. The only term that is well-known to many is life imprisonment, which, however, also creates problems due to its ambiguity as a penalty. Regarding temporary imprisonment, it has been legislatively modified and is now as follows:
- Temporary imprisonment has a penalty range of 5 to 20 years.
- In the Penal Code, concerning felonies, temporary imprisonment as a penalty is the norm, and life imprisonment is the exception.
- Due to this change, someone now convicted to a sentence of temporary imprisonment must serve at least 3/5 of their sentence.
- This is so that they can later use the parole system.
- Temporary imprisonment as a penalty is significant because even a 5-year sentence imposed on someone (the minimum limit) immediately makes their act a felony.
- Thus, the statute of limitations for the crime, which was 5 years for misdemeanors, becomes 15 years because it is now considered a felony.
9.Crimes Against the State Prosecuted Ex Officio
Previously, prosecuting crimes against the state was quite complicated in practice due to the permit required from the competent authority to initiate an investigation into an alleged crime. This coveted permit took considerable time (even 2 to 3 years to be issued). Subsequently, the legal representative of the state (e.g., the head of the tax office) also had to file a complaint with the prosecutor for the criminal prosecution to be legally initiated, resulting in the prosecution of the offender commencing 5 to 6 years after the commission of the act.
This was the reason why many crimes directed against the state had very long statutes of limitations (usually 20 years from the commission of the act), allowing the court to issue a decision before the crime became time-barred. These statutes of limitations had raised constitutional issues, but because it is a significant issue, we can discuss it in a subsequent text.
Now, according to the new Penal Code, the prosecution of crimes against the state will be ex officio = the necessary permit and complaint from the legal representative of the state will no longer be required, thus speeding up the process significantly. However, nothing has changed regarding the statute of limitations for crimes against the state, which remains at 20 years, so it will be interesting to see how the legislator will proceed in this regard (whether they will reduce the statute of limitations for crimes due to faster adjudication by the courts or not).
10.Defamation Completely Changed as a Crime
Finally, regarding crimes against honor, some changes were made by the legislator aimed at simplifying matters in the everyday relationships of individuals. Specifically, what was done as a legislative change was:
- Defamation was abolished as a criminal offense.
- Thus, only malicious defamation remains a crime, and the perpetrator must disseminate false information about another person and be aware that the information is false = acting with malice.
- If committed publicly or through the internet, it is punishable by imprisonment of at least 6 months and a fine.
- All the reasons that the law provided for the perpetrator’s unjustified exoneration were abolished (i.e., if the information was true, if there was a legitimate public interest in informing the public, primarily for the media and journalists).
- Defamation is not considered malicious if it occurs in front of a judge or public official for the needs of a trial.
- Thus, the perpetrator can no longer invoke the reasons for lifting the unjust provided by the law in their favor, making things much more difficult for them.
Next to the client and his needs.
Athena Kontogianni – Lawyer
The above does not constitute legal advice, and no responsibility is taken for it. For more information, contact us.