Video, audio and communications monitoring can be applied only with the permission of the investigative judge, and given in the form of a decision. You can therefore:
- appeal the decision of the investigative judge if you do not agree that the monitoring was necessary and see it as a disproportionate intrusion into your private life
- challenge the action which was carried out by the investigator or other competent officials if you believe that the action was not carried out in accordance with the decision of the investigative judge, the relevant legal provisions and/or in a disproportionate, intrusive way
Appealing the decision of the investigative judge
You can appeal the decision taken by an investigative judge to the chairperson of a court of general jurisdiction. The chairperson of the court of general jurisdiction will make the final decision, which cannot be appealed.
You can complain in either written or oral form, and in the latter case, your oral arguments should be entered in the minutes and signed by you and the person who prepared them. If you do not understand Croatian, the language in which the criminal proceedings and decisions take place, you have the right to submit your complaint in the language that you understand.You can file a complaint any time during the pre-trial criminal proceedings, before the criminal case has been submitted to the court, and after the completion of the trial, should you have knowledge of any facts that you have been a subject to these measures.
Challenging the special investigative action
The person directing the proceedings, usually an investigator, or institutions or persons assigned by him/her, are empowered to carry out special investigative actions.
In the case of on appeal, you can:
- File a complaint with the State Attorney's Office (Državno odvjetništvo) responsible for the territory where the violation occurred. Attach any evidence supporting your claim, such as documentation of unauthorized monitoring or witnesses' testimonies. The State Attorney's Office will investigate the complaint and decide whether to initiate criminal proceedings against the violators.
- Should you have a concrete document, you can seek civil compensation. If the complaint leads to criminal proceedings and the court finds the monitoring unlawful, you can claim compensation for damages suffered due to the violation. This could include emotional distress, reputational harm, or financial losses.
If you do not agree with the decisions taken by either the supervising public prosecutor or the person directing the proceedings, you can appeal to a public prosecutor of higher rank, whose decision is final and not subject to appeal.