Benjamin Flander

Short Resume

Benjamin Flander, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Law at the Faculty of Criminal Justice and Security of the University of Maribor and a Senior Research Associate at the Law Institute of the Science and Research Centre Koper, Slovenia. The areas of his specialiSation are the theory of law, constitutional law, and human rights in criminal justice systems. He is the co-author of the recently published monograph Toolkit for Handling and Admissibility of Electronic Evidence: Empowering Legal Practitioners to Critically Review E-Evidence from the Procedural Rights Perspective.

Title of the presentation

Criminal Investigation in the Digital Age – Gathering and Handling Electronic Evidence

Abstract

Several reports highlight that 90% of criminal cases have a digital element and that evidence in an electronic form is increasingly present in criminal proceedings and criminal investigations. In both the pre-trial and trial stages, the process of acquiring and handling electronic evidence undergoes distinct phases. In the present paper, the focus is placed on the pre-trial criminal investigation phase where the process can be divided into several (sub)phases, which include collection, preservation and analysis of electronic evidence. These phases can be split into further steps which, all together, lead to the preparation of electronic material by law enforcement agencies that serve as evidence in court. In each of these phases, the investigators must deal with the challenge of verifying the source and chain of custody to ensure the evidence’s reliability and meet specific legal standards for admissibility. Here, the presumption of innocence and several other procedural rights and safeguards play a significant but distinctive role if a fair and just trial is to be ensured. Last but not least, the investigators are also faced with challenges related to the cross-border exchange of electronic (and other) evidence, mutual legal assistance and the recognition of foreign evidence by their domestic courts.

Keywords

criminal investigation, electronic evidence, law enforcement, fundamental rights, digital age