Expertise cases as the source of evidence and the effectiveness of their use in the criminal process

Abstract

Expertise as one of the sources of evidence taken during the criminal proceeding is determined by the proceeding authority, though putting before the expert questions to be settled on the basis of his special knowledge. The settlement of these questions is realized through the submission of the relevant material by the prosecutor or the court, examination of which enables the expert to come to the relevant conclusions about a particular fact or circumstance. During the criminal proceeding, the judicial police, the prosecutor and the court, for the purpose of detecting and verifying important facts of a certain criminal case, as necessary, call specialists from various fields of science, technology and culture to ask for their qualified opinion. The object of expertise may be: the place where the criminal offense has occurred; the item on which the author has acted while committing the criminal offense; traces found in this item or means of committing the criminal offense; traces of living beings (humans or animals, poultry, etc., to which the perpetrator has acted) that may be: traces of blood, saliva, semen, hairs, skin from different parts the author’s body or to the perpetrator of the criminal offense –traces remained by the victims or the persons against whom the criminal offense has been committed, but which confirm the presence of the perpetrator in the criminal offense that is under investigation by the preliminary investigation bodies or is being tried by the court. Given the diversity of human life, cases of expertise are diverse and so are the needs of the prosecuting authorities as well. This paper will address some of them which will be found in the Albanian criminal proceeding, or even in that of the other European countries and beyond.