Dubai: Dubai Public Prosecution [DPP] has launched a first-of-its-kind initiative that enables prosecutors to cross-examine or hear testimony of elderly individuals and those with special needs and/or children at their homes.
The new initiative, ‘Al Dar Prosecution’ [House Prosecution], enables DPP’s prosecutor to visit the individuals involved in the case, in their capacity as witnesses or suspects, at their houses or place of stay and question or hear their statements, according to Senior Prosecutor Yousuf Ameen Al Ali.
“The new initiative is limited to certain community categories, such as children under the age of 15, elderly and individuals with special needs. The Al Dar Prosecution or House Prosecution allows the investigating prosecutor to question or hear the involved person at his/her residence … it even allows the prosecutor to communicate with the Dubai Health Authority to cross-examine individuals in hospitals or medical centres or at the Dubai Foundation for Women and Children,” Al Ali said on Tuesday.
The prosecutor takes his/her smart suitcase that has been designed specially to facilitate the prosecutor’s mission in accessing the papers and case files online and also contains smart and digital devices that enable the prosecutor to carry out an on-field investigation, he added.
A senior prosecution source told Gulf News: “The initiative went on a trial period for nearly six months before it was recently approved. It has become official and has been put into action.”
However, the source did not to mention when DPP started enforcing it.
Meanwhile Prosecutor Hamda Mohammad Ahli, of Deira Prosecution, said: “The initiative has made it easier for investigating prosecutors to hear statements of molested or abused children … it also allows prosecutors to cross-examine individuals involved in cases of domestic violence, especially in cases that require privacy, confidentially and discretion.”
