According to article 6 of the Penal Code, the security measures must be proportional to the criminal dangerousness of the subject on whom they are imposed, and They can never be more burdensome or of longer duration than the penalty that would be applied to the same subject in the event of being convicted of the act committed, nor exceed the limit duration necessary to prevent its dangerousness.
1. Security measures are based on the criminal dangerousness of the subject on whom they are imposed, externalized in the commission of an act considered a crime.
2. Security measures cannot be more burdensome or longer than the penalty abstractly applicable to the act committed, nor exceed the limit of what is necessary to prevent the perpetrator from becoming dangerous.
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How is a security measure defined?
In the words of the Legal Spanish Dictionary, a security measure is defined as a criminal sanction that is applied to a subject who is declared criminally dangerous after the commission of a crime.
Where are security measures regulated?
Security measures are regulated in the Penal Code, Title IV (about security measures).
The fundamental precept that defines them in legal terms is established in Chapter I (of security measures in general), article 95:
1. The security measures will be applied by the Judge or Court, following the reports he deems appropriate, to the people who are in the cases provided for in the following chapter of this Code, provided that these circumstances occur:
1. That the subject has committed an act foreseen as a crime.
2. That a forecast of future behavior can be deduced from the fact and personal circumstances of the subject that reveals the probability of committing new crimes.
2. When the penalty that could have been imposed for the crime committed is not custodial, the judge or sentencing court may only agree to one or some of the measures provided for in article 96.3.
What types of security measures are there?
In it article 96 of the Penal Code What security measures may be like is contemplated:
Security measures depriving of liberty
- Internment in a psychiatric center.
- Internment in a dehabituation center.
- Internment in a special educational center.
Non-custodial security measures
- Professional disqualification.
- The expulsion from the national territory of foreigners not legally resident in Spain.
- Probation.
- Family custody.
- The deprivation of the right to drive motor vehicles and mopeds.
- The deprivation of the right to own and carry weapons.
What can the judge do during the execution of the sentence?
Judge that had determined the need to apply security measures against the subject who had committed an illegal act, during the execution of the sentence, You can make the following decisions, as allowed by the article 97 of the Penal Code:
a) Maintain the execution of the imposed security measure.
b) Decree the cessation of any security measures imposed as soon as the subject's criminal danger disappears.
c) Replace a security measure with another that it deems more appropriate, among those provided for the case in question. In the event that the substitution is agreed upon and the subject evolves unfavorably, the substitution will be voided, and the replaced measure will be reapplied.
d) Suspend the execution of the measure in response to the result already obtained with its application, for a period not exceeding the remainder up to the maximum indicated in the ruling that imposed it. The suspension will be conditional on the subject not committing a crime during the established period, and may be voided if any of the circumstances provided for in article 95 of this Code are proven again.
What happens if a security measure is breached?
Under the article 100 of the Penal Code, if a security measure is breached, The judge or court will order the subject's return to prison which had been granted the security measures regime.
References
- Penal Code
- What are security measures in criminal law?, Dexia Abogados