Bulgaria’s Parliament approves amendments to Penal Code

At a lengthy sitting on July 18, Bulgaria’s National Assembly approved numerous amendments to the Penal Code, covering matters from drink-driving to hearing of evidence in court to cruelty to animals.

If a driver refuses to be tested for alcohol and/or drugs after being involved in a traffic accident, a penalty of up to one year in prison and a fine of 2500 leva is provided for.

If driving with an alcohol level of over 1.2 per mille in the blood, the offender will be punished with imprisonment from one to three years and a fine of 1000 leva to 5000 leva. The previous fine was from 200 to 1000 leva.

In the event of a repeat offence, if the offender was driving with an alcohol level of over 0.5 per mille in the blood, the fine increases from 2000 to 10 000 leva. Imprisonment from one to five years is also provided for.

For driving after using narcotics, the fine is provided to be from 1000 to 5000 leva (previously from 500 to 1500 leva), and in the event of a repeat offence it increases to from 2000 to 10 000 leva.

The amendments provide that in the event of causing the death of one or more persons in a traffic accident, the penalty will be from 12 to 20 years, if the act was committed while intoxicated or after using drugs, or the perpetrator fled the scene of the accident, or drove without the necessary driving license, as well as after exceeding the permitted speed in a populated area by more than 50 km/h, or if the act was committed after passing a red traffic light or on a pedestrian crossing.

In particularly serious cases, the punishment is provided for from 13 to 20 years or life imprisonment.

If in such cases, moderate or severe bodily harm is caused to one or more persons, the punishment is from four to 12 years.

Parliament reduced the lower limits of the sanctions for defamation and insult. Until now, the punishment for insult was a fine of 1000 to 3000 leva. Now, the fine is provided for from 500 to 3000 leva. The fine for defamation is from 1000 to 7000 leva, while until now it was from 3000 to 7000 leva.

The amendments include penalties for financing terrorism. Whoever directly or indirectly collects or provides financial resources or other property, knowing or assuming that they will be used in whole or in part to commit a crime under this chapter, shall be punished by imprisonment for three to 12 years, a fine of 5000 to 30 000 leva and deprivation of the right to hold a certain state or public office and to exercise a certain profession or activity.

The amendments provides for the questioning in court of experts to be carried out via video conference or telephone conference when experts are prevented from appearing before the court.

For proceedings in which the expertise is assigned to several experts, it is explicitly provided that the questioning of each of them can be carried out via video conference or telephone conference.

The aim is to limit cases of postponement of cases due to the absence of experts.

It is planned to increase the requirements for experts in the field of forensic auto-technical expertise, by introducing an exam for recognition of their legal capacity, as well as annual improvement of their professional qualifications.

An exception to these rules will apply only to those holding the academic position of associate professor or professor in higher education institutions, scientific organizations or the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences.

Anyone who sells an alcoholic beverage, tobacco product or smokeless tobacco product to a person under the age of 18 will be punished with probation and a fine of 2000 to 5000 leva. For this offence, the law previously provided for a fine of up to 1000 leva and probation, and in the case of systematic commission of the act, imprisonment for up to three years and a fine of up to 3000 leva.

The punishment for crimes against animals is from 1 to 6 years and a fine of 1000 to 10 000 leva.

Offences include organising or participating in animal fights, breeding, training or providing animals for fights. For cruelty to a vertebrate animal, death, as well as serious or permanent disability, the punishment is imprisonment for one to five years and a fine of 1000 to 5000 leva.