On the issue of participants in the examination of testimonies during the investigation of road traffic offenses

The subject of this research is the determining and selecting of participants during the verification of their testimonies in traffic crimes investigation. The author pays special attention to the study of problems related to determining the optimal composition of participants for on-site testimony verification in the investigation of traffic offenses. The author examines various approaches to solving these issues, studying the norms of criminal procedural legislation in the Russian Federation and CIS countries, as well as analyzing judicial practice and specialized literature on this topic. Particular attention is paid to the assistance that each of the analyzed participants can provide to the law enforcement during the investigation of traffic crimes. The aim of the study is to develop practical recommendations for law enforcement on forming a rational composition of participants in investigative actions. The methodological framework of the study includes: the method of critical analysis, the method of legal modeling, comparative legal method, and the observation method. The scientific novelty of the research lies in the author's examination of participants involved in on-site testimony verification during the investigation of traffic crimes. The author summarizes new material on the researched topic: official statistics on accident rates for the first four months of 2025 and official statistics on crime levels for 2023, 2024, and the first four months of 2025, examples from judicial practice for October and November 2024, as well as the author's experience in investigating traffic crimes. The main conclusions of the scientific research are: first, the analysis of the normative regulation of the composition of participants in on-site testimony verification in Russian and foreign criminal procedural legislation; second, the identification of key participants and the determination of their roles in achieving the goals and objectives of this investigative action; third, the conclusion regarding the necessity of involving participants based on the assistance each can provide to the law enforcement during the investigation of traffic crimes.

road traffic accidents, road traffic offences, criminal investigation, investigative actions, investigation of road traffic offences, forensic methodology, forensic tactics, on-the-spot testimony, participants in the on-site testimony, CPCs of the CIS states