FantasticSearch

(45) Children are in a particularly vulnerable position when they are deprived of liberty. Special efforts should therefore be undertaken to avoid deprivation of liberty and, in particular, detention of children at any stage of the proceedings before the final determination by a court of the question whether the child concerned has committed the criminal offence, given the possible risks for their physical, mental and social development, and because deprivation of liberty could lead to difficulties as regards their reintegration into society. Member States could make practical arrangements, such as guidelines or instructions to police officers, on the application of this requirement to situations of police custody. In any case, this requirement is without prejudice to the possibility for police officers or other law enforcement authorities to apprehend a child in situations where it seems, prima facie, to be necessary to do so, such as in flagrante delicto or immediately after a criminal offence has been committed.

(46) The competent authorities should always consider measures alternative to detention (alternative measures) and should have recourse to such measures where possible. Such alternative measures could include a prohibition for the child to be in certain places, an obligation for the child to reside in a specific place, restrictions concerning contact with specific persons, reporting obligations to the competent authorities, participation in educational programmes, or, subject to the child's consent, participation in therapeutic or addiction programmes.

(47) Detention of children should be subject to periodic review by a court, which could also be a judge sitting alone. It should be possible to carry out such periodic review ex officio by the court, or at the request of the child, of the child's lawyer or of a judicial authority which is not a court, in particular a prosecutor. Member States should provide for practical arrangements in that respect, including regarding the situation where a periodic review has already been carried out ex officio by the court and the child or the child's lawyer requests that another review be carried out.

(48) Where children are detained they should benefit from special protection measures. In particular, they should be held separately from adults unless it is considered to be in the child's best interests not to do so, in accordance with Article 37(c) of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. When a detained child reaches the age of 18, it should be possible to continue separate detention where warranted, taking into account the circumstances of the person concerned. Particular attention should be paid to the manner in which detained children are treated given their inherent vulnerability. Children should have access to educational facilities according to their needs.

(49) Member States should ensure that children who are suspects or accused persons and kept in police custody are held separately from adults, unless it is considered to be in the child's best interests not to do so, or unless, in exceptional circumstances, it is not possible in practice to do so, provided that children are held together with adults in a manner that is compatible with the child's best interests. For example, in sparsely populated areas, it should be possible, exceptionally, for children to be held in police custody with adults, unless this is contrary to the child's best interests. In such situations, particular vigilance should be required on the part of competent authorities in order to protect the child's physical integrity and well-being.

(50) It should be possible to detain children with young adults unless this is contrary to the child's best interests. It is for Member States to determine which persons are considered to be young adults in accordance with their national law and procedures. Member States are encouraged to determine that persons older than 24 years do not qualify as young adults.

(51) Where children are detained, Member States should take appropriate measures as set out in this Directive. Such measures should, inter alia, ensure the effective and regular exercise of the right to family life. Children should have the right to maintain regular contact with their parents, family and friends through visits and correspondence, unless exceptional restrictions are required in the child's best interests or in the interests of justice.

(52) Member States should also take appropriate measures to ensure respect for the freedom of religion or belief of the child. In that regard, Member States should, in particular, refrain from interfering with the religion or belief of the child. Member States are not, however, required to take active steps to assist children in worshipping.

(53) Where appropriate, Member States should also take appropriate measures in other situations of deprivation of liberty. The measures taken should be proportionate and appropriate to the nature of the deprivation of liberty, such as police custody or detention, and to its duration.

(54) Professionals in direct contact with children should take into account the particular needs of children of different age groups and should ensure that the proceedings are adapted to them. For those purposes, those professionals should be specially trained in dealing with children.

(55) Children should be treated in a manner appropriate to their age, maturity and level of understanding, taking into account any special needs, including any communication difficulties, that they may have.

(56) Taking into account the differences between the legal traditions and systems across the Member States, the privacy of children during criminal proceedings should be ensured in the best possible way with a view, inter alia, to facilitating the reintegration of children into society. Member States should provide that court hearings involving children are usually held in the absence of the public, or allow courts or judges to decide to hold such hearings in the absence of the public. This is without prejudice to judgments being pronounced publicly in accordance with Article 6 ECHR.

(57) Children should have the right to be accompanied by the holder of parental responsibility during court hearings in which they are involved. If more than one person holds parental responsibility for the same child, the child should have the right to be accompanied by all of them, unless this is not possible in practice despite the competent authorities' reasonable efforts. Member States should lay down practical arrangements for the exercise by children of the right to be accompanied by the holder of parental responsibility during court hearings in which they are involved and concerning the conditions under which an accompanying person may be temporarily excluded from court hearings. Such arrangements could, inter alia, address the situation where the holder of parental responsibility is temporarily not available to accompany the child or where the holder does not want to make use of the possibility to accompany the child, provided that the child's best interests are taken into account.

(58) In certain circumstances, which can also relate to only one of the persons holding parental responsibility, the child should have the right to be accompanied during court hearings by an appropriate adult other than the holder of parental responsibility. One of those circumstances is where the holder of parental responsibility accompanying the child could substantially jeopardise the criminal proceedings, in particular where objective and factual circumstances indicate or give rise to the suspicion that evidence may be destroyed or altered, witnesses may be interfered with, or the holder of parental responsibility may have been involved with the child in the alleged criminal activity.

(59) In accordance with this Directive, children should also have the right to be accompanied by the holder of parental responsibility during other stages of the proceedings at which they are present, such as during police questioning.

(60) The right of an accused person to appear in person at the trial is based on the right to a fair trial provided for in Article 47 of the Charter and in Article 6 ECHR, as interpreted by the Court of Justice and by the European Court of Human Rights. Member States should take appropriate measures to provide incentives for children to attend their trial, including by summoning them in person and by sending a copy of the summons to the holder of parental responsibility or, where that would be contrary to the child's best interests, to another appropriate adult. Member States should provide for practical arrangements regarding the presence of a child at the trial. Those arrangements could include provisions concerning the conditions under which a child can be temporarily excluded from the trial.

(61) Certain rights provided for by this Directive should apply to children who are requested persons from the time when they are arrested in the executing Member State.

(70) In accordance with Articles 1 and 2 of Protocol No 22 on the position of Denmark, annexed to the TEU and to the TFEU, Denmark is not taking part in the adoption of this Directive, and is not bound by it or subject to its application.

(71) In accordance with the Joint Political Declaration of Member States and the Commission of 28 September 2011 on explanatory documents , Member States have undertaken to accompany, in justified cases, the notification of their transposition measures with one or more documents explaining the relationship between the components of a directive and the corresponding parts of national transposition instruments. With regard to this Directive, the legislator considers the transmission of such documents to be justified,