Los derechos fundamentales y el reconocimiento mutuo en el ámbito penal en la Unión Europea

Abstract

Judicial cooperation in criminal matters in the EU is necessary to guarantee security and avoid impunity in a space without internal borders. The principle of mutual recognition guarantees that this cooperation is almost automatic, but its application conflicts with the protection of the fundamental rights of suspects and convicts by preventing the executing authority from examining their possible violation, relying on the presumption of equivalent protection of rights in all Member States. In order to guarantee the adequate protection of these rights, it is necessary to resort to the interpretation of the principle of mutual recognition in conformity with the CFREU, allow exceptions in the event of a breach of mutual trust between States, and reinforce procedural safeguards in criminal proceedings. These techniques, already applied by the European legislator and case-law, are analyzed in this dissertation in order to assess their effectiveness, identify possible shortcomings and formulate proposals for improvement.