Third State convictions executed in EU Member States subject to an EAW

Article 4(7)(b)?deals with extra-territorial offences, and allows an executing state to refuse execution where the offence is committed out with the territory of the issuing state and the executing state does not allow prosecution for the same offence committed outside its territory.

In its judgment of 17 March 2021 in Case C-488/19 (JR)[1], the CJEU, had to address the following question in relation to the applicability of FD[2]?and the scope of refusal grounds of the basis of extraterritoriality. The question being: whether an EAW issued on the basis of a judicial decision issued by a member state of a sentence imposed by a third state court, and the offence committed within the third state territory.

The CJEU held that article 4(7)(b) EAW FD must be interpreted as meaning that, in the case of an EAW issued on the basis of a judicial decision of the issuing member state on the basis of a sentence imposed in a third country, the offence is still to be regarded as taking place in the third state and not to be artificially regarded to have taken place in the issuing member state. Therefore, an EAW can also be issued on the basis of a sentence imposed in a third state and there is no barrier to the issuance of an EAW; provided that the four-month custodial sentence threshold is met and provided that the sentence was recognized in the issuing EU Member State and that the procedure leading to the adoption of the third state judgment is in line with fundamental rights.

[1]?https://curia.europa.eu/juris/liste.jsf?oqp=&for=&mat=or&jge=&td=%3BALL&jur=C%2CT%2CF&num=c-488%252F19&page=1&dates=&pcs=Oor&lg=&pro=&nat=or&cit=none%252CC%252CCJ%252CR%252C2008E%252C%252C%252C%252C%252C%252C%252C%252C%252C%252Ctrue%252Cfalse%252Cfalse&language=en&avg=&cid=6066221

[2]??Framework Decision on the European Arrest Warrant (FD EAW)

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