You have received a summon from the Public Prosecutor’s Office in which it is stated that you will be interrogated as a suspect for Endangerment of safety under Article 138 of the Criminal Code. An even worse situation – you have been arrested for Endangerment of Safety, held in police custody and then later detention can be proposed. However, you don’t know what Endangerment of Safety is and what you did that is considered a criminal offence. This text will explain Endangerment of safety – what it is, what are its elements and what are the repercussions.
What is Endangerment of safety?
According to the legal definition, this criminal offense is committed by a person who endangers the safety of another person by threatening to attack the life or body of that person or a person close to him. This legal formulation allows for very broad application to numerous life situations.
First of all, the manner in which this criminal offence is committed is a threat, which can be directed in a variety of ways: verbally or in writing, by implicit actions, by showing certain objects, drawings, signs, etc. The threat must be serious and possible, taking into account the subjective feeling of the person who is threatened and the objective circumstances of the specific situation.
In order for this criminal offense to legally exist, in addition to the act of execution, there must also be a consequence. That consequence is the endangered safety of the person who is being threatened. In other words, the directed threat must cause fear of such intensity in the other person that he/she feels personal insecurity, restlessness and anxiety.
What are the forms of Endangerment of safety and the possible penalties?
This criminal offence has three forms: one basic and two specific. Everything aforementioned pertains to the basic form. The remaining two forms are essentially identical to the basic form, with some important differences.
The first specific form is committed if the commission of the basic form of the criminal offense results in a more serious consequence – if the criminal offense was committed against more than one person; if the act caused public anxiety or if other serious consequences occurred.
The second specific form is committed if the basic form of the criminal offense is committed against a certain group of persons: the President of the Republic, a member of the parliament, the head of Government, members of the Government, a judge of the Constitutional Court, a judge, a public prosecutor, a deputy public prosecutor, a lawyer, a police officer and a person who performs duties of public importance in the field of public information, in connection with the work he performs.
For the basic form, the potential penalty is a fine or imprisonment for up to one year. For the first specific form, the potential penalty is imprisonment from three months to three years. For the second specific form, the potential penalty is imprisonment from six months to five years.
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