New Punishment in Armenia: House Arrest Introduced by Parliament

The National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia has approved the draft law on the "Criminal Code of the Republic of Armenia" and a legislative package that includes amendments to related laws in the second reading and in full.

It is noteworthy that this legislation establishes new types of punishments that serve as alternatives to imprisonment. In particular, the draft includes the punishment of "restriction of liberty" (house arrest), which will be carried out with the use of electronic monitoring tools. The process for the state procurement of electronic "bracelets" for the implementation of house arrest has already been planned.

Another innovation is digital searches, which include the examination of data from electronic storage devices. Additionally, the amendment will replace the current legislative treatment of the approval procedure with an expedited trial institution provided by existing legislation. In this case, the individual will have the opportunity to accept the charges brought against him before the actual trial begins and to negotiate with the prosecutor regarding the punishment to be imposed, compensation for damages to the victim, and the seizure of property of criminal origin.

If negotiations take place, the accused may receive a lighter sentence, or the imposed sentence may not be enforced conditionally. This is, by the way, a new development for criminal proceedings.

The new criminal code, with all its new institutions, will come into force on July 1, 2022, while the institution of criminal responsibility for legal entities will start on January 1, 2023, and the provisions concerning the punishment of restriction of liberty will take effect on July 1, 2023.