Título I

The Public Prosecutor's Office is an institution with autonomous functions, promotes criminal prosecution and directs the investigation of crimes of public action; it shall also ensure strict compliance with the laws of the country.

In the exercise of that function, the Public Prosecutor's Office shall pursue the realization of justice, and shall act with objectivity, impartiality and in adherence to the principle of legality, in the terms established by law.

The functions of the Public Prosecutor's Office, without prejudice to those attributed to it by other laws, are the following:

1.To investigate crimes of public action and to promote criminal prosecution before the tribunals, according to the powers conferred upon it by the Constitution, the laws of the Republic, and international treaties and agreements,

2.To exercise civil action in the cases provided for by law, and to advise whoever intends to file a private complaint for crimes of private action in accordance with the provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code,

3.To direct the police and the other State security bodies in the investigation of criminal acts,

4.To preserve the rule of law and respect for human rights, carrying out the necessary proceedings before the tribunals of justice.

The Public Prosecutor's Office shall act independently, on its own initiative and in fulfillment of the functions attributed to it by the laws, without subordination to any of the State bodies or any authority, except as established in this law.

Annually, it shall have an allocation in the General Budget of the Nation and shall administer its resources autonomously in accordance with its own requirements.

The President of the Republic may invite the Prosecutor General to participate in any meeting of the Cabinet or of the Ministers of State. In this case the Prosecutor General shall be obligated to attend the meeting, with voice but without vote.

The Public Prosecutor's Office is single and indivisible for the entire State. It is organized hierarchically. It shall be fully represented in the actions of each of its public officials. To establish the standing to act of a Prosecutor of the Public Prosecutor's Office, only the certificate of his office or, as applicable, the granted mandate shall be necessary. The public officials who assist a hierarchical superior shall obey instructions in accordance with the provisions of this law.

The Public Prosecutor's Office may request the collaboration of any public official and administrative authority of the State Bodies and of their decentralized, autonomous entities, for the performance of its functions, such officials and authorities being understood to be those so defined in their specific law, they being obligated to provide it without delay and to provide the documents and reports required of them, which contain information on individual or legal persons that is useful for the investigation it conducts.

The authorities, public officials and bodies requested by the Public Prosecutor's Office, in the exercise of the powers conferred upon it by law, shall inexcusably comply with the request, without any exception, within the legal limits and the time limit established in the request. The Head of the Comptroller General of Accounts, the comptrollers and the Superintendency of Banks have the same obligation.

The Public Prosecutor's Office may only report on the results of investigations provided that it does not violate the principle of innocence, the right to privacy and the dignity of persons; it shall also take care not to jeopardize the investigations being carried out.

The Public Prosecutor's Office and the authorities under its direction may not present any detainee to the media without authorization from the Competent Judge.

The Public Prosecutor's Office shall direct its actions taking into account the interests of the victim, to whom it shall provide broad assistance and respect. It shall inform the victim of the result of the investigations and notify the decision that puts an end to the case, even when the victim has not joined as a complainant.