Peci

Sounds of Silence; A research into the relationship between administrative supervision, criminal investigation and the nemo-tenetur principle

The subject of this thesis is the relationship between administrative supervision, criminal investigation and the nemo-tenetur principle. The point of departure is the distinction made in Dutch law and doctrine between administrative supervision and criminal investigation. Such a distinction is often made in the area of the enforcement of socio-economic regulatory legislation where supervision and investigation are perceived as (isolated) phases of the regulatory process. The supervision phase gives way to the investigation phase as soon as a suspicion that a criminal offence has been commited arises. Initially, one of the main arguments in favour of the distinction seems to have been that a citizen's obligation to provide information to the supervising authorities, conflicts with a suspect's right to remain silent during the the investigation phase. Therefore, the central question of this study is whether it is necessary to have a strict demarcation between administrative supervision and criminal investigation in order to (better) respect the nemo-tenetur principle.