The Fundamental Rights Aspects of Life Imprisonment Without Parole

Abstract

Under the current Criminal Code, life imprisonment without parole constitutes the most severe penalty that can be imposed, that is, the strictest sanction within the Hungarian criminal justice system. The application and enforcement of life imprisonment without parole have for decades been the subject of intense constitutional and human rights debates in Hungary, in Europe, and across the world. While the very legitimacy of life imprisonment without parole is not fundamentally disputed, it is clear that from the perspective of fundamental (human) rights such a sanction entails numerous potential problems and anomalies, even though the Hungarian regulation continuously seeks to comply with the positions and expectations of the international fora. The aim of this study is to provide an overview of the principal fundamental rights dimensions of life imprisonment without parole in light of Hungarian legal regulation and judicial practice.