Prosecution of Environmental Crime in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina for the Period 2018–2020

Abstract

The paper analyzes issues related to the criminal prosecution of perpetrators of crimes against the environment, especially from the aspect of criminal legislation and the practice itself in the prosecution of these crimes against the environment in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Bearing in mind that in criminal offenses against the environment, as a rule, there is no immediate victim, and that this type of criminality can remain unnoticed for a long period of time before any possible damage becomes visible, in this paper, the review of official statistical data offers an overview related to the processing of these of criminal offenses in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina for the selected three-year period from 2018 to 2020. Although the majority of criminal legislation in the countries of the former Yugoslavia, including Bosnia and Herzegovina, sets a high level of environmental protection, the analysis of official statistical data cannot conclude that the detection and prosecution of this type of criminal offense has a sufficient prioritization in Radujoš. both with administrative bodies and with criminal prosecution bodies, regardless of the developed capacities about the dangers and serious consequences of this type of criminality. In this regard, in addition to the practice of prosecuting criminal offenses against the environment in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the paper also offers a set of recommendations for decision makers on systemic steps for adequate environmental protection.