What is Withdrawal of Complaint in Turkish Criminal Law?
What is Withdrawal of Complaint in Turkish Criminal Law?
In this article, I would like to talk about the right to withdraw a complaint in Turkish Criminal Law.
In crimes subject to complaint for investigation and prosecution, persons who have the right to complain—namely, the victim or the person harmed by the crime—have the right to withdraw their complaint. This right is regulated in the 4th clause of Article 73 of the Turkish Penal Code as follows: “In crimes subject to complaint for prosecution, unless otherwise provided by law, the withdrawal of the complaint by the person harmed by the crime shall cause the dismissal of the case, and withdrawal after the judgment has become final shall not prevent the execution of the sentence.”.
The Turkish Penal Code accepts the withdrawal of a complaint as valid within the scope of crimes subject to complaint, except in cases reserved by law.
The subject of the withdrawal is the complaint itself. The withdrawal is effective only regarding the complaint of the person who withdraws; if there are other complaints, they will continue.
The right to withdraw a complaint may be exercised until the judgment becomes final. The right to withdraw may be exercised from the initiation of the investigation upon complaint until the subsequent filing of a public prosecution. This right may be exercised until the end of the filed case, i.e., until the verdict is announced.
When exercising the right to withdraw a complaint, the intention to withdraw must be demonstrated in a way that leaves no room for doubt. The person exercising the right to withdraw a complaint must have their statement of withdrawal recorded in writing or verbally in the minutes.
In crimes committed in complicity, the withdrawal of a complaint regarding one of the defendants also covers the others. This rule is regulated in the 5th clause of Article 73 of the Turkish Penal Code as follows: “The withdrawal of a complaint regarding one of the defendants who committed a crime in complicity also covers the others.”.
For the withdrawal of a complaint to be effective, the defendant must accept the proposal to withdraw. This condition is regulated in the 6th clause of Article 73 of the Turkish Penal Code as follows: “Unless otherwise provided by law, the withdrawal does not affect the defendant who does not accept it.”. Until the defendant accepts or rejects the proposal for withdrawal, the right to withdraw a complaint may be rescinded.
Within the scope of crimes subject to complaint, the trial process stops with the withdrawal of the complaint. If the withdrawal of the complaint is made during the investigation stage, the prosecutor issues a "Decision of Non-Prosecution". If the withdrawal of the complaint is made during the prosecution stage, the judge decides to dismiss the case.
In cases where the public prosecution is dismissed due to the exercise of the right to withdraw a complaint, if the person who withdrew the complaint has also declared that they waive their personal rights, they will not be able to file a lawsuit in civil courts for the compensation of these damages. This situation is regulated in the 7th clause of Article 73 of the Turkish Penal Code as follows: “If the dismissal of the public prosecution arises from the person harmed by the crime having withdrawn the complaint and they have also explicitly stated at the time of withdrawal that they waive their personal rights, they can no longer file a lawsuit in a civil court.”.