A/HRC/31/57/Add.4 present report, no investigations had been concluded and no one had been criminally charged. 104. In order to allow for an examination of all defendants immediately after contact with the judge, public defender and prosecutor, forensic examinations take place in specific forensic centres established at the courthouse where custody hearings are held. The Special Rapporteur expresses concern, however, at the fact that these examinations often are not attended by the public defender or the judge but, paradoxically enough, often are attended by the investigating officers. 105. He wishes to reiterate the importance of addressing the challenges related to lack of training and knowledge of international forensic standards among medico-legal staff, and the lack of independence of the Medical-Legal Institute. He fully supports the proposed constitutional amendment to grant full independence to all federal and state forensic services. 106. The Special Rapporteur encourages the expansion of custody hearings, and urges courts to consider redesigning the process with a view to eliminating the constraints that currently prevent detainees from filing complaints and obstruct the documentation of ill-treatment, as well as the State’s ability to monitor its precise prevalence. 107. Apart from the custody hearing project, the Special Rapporteur is aware of the use of so-called mutiroes, which expedite individual cases by grouping them together in mass hearings. Although limited in scope, they are a promising attempt to streamline procedures, appoint substitute judges and avoid unnecessary delays in the administration of justice. Proposal to lower the age of criminal liability and lengthen the maximum time of detention 108. With regard to safeguards and prevention for adolescents, the Special Rapporteur is aware of draft bill 171/1993, proposing to lower the age of criminal responsibility from 18 to 16 years. The draft bill was approved in the first round of debates in the Chamber of Deputies in June 2015; however, as it amends the Constitution, the bill has to pass both the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate with at least two thirds of the vote, in two rounds. 109. He is greatly concerned about this measure, noting that prosecuting adolescent offenders as adults may violate the obligations of Brazil under the Convention on the Rights of the Child and seriously undermines the 1990 statute on children and adolescents, considered a landmark by children’s rights advocates. Approval of these proposals would worsen conditions in the already seriously overcrowded adult detention centres throughout Brazil. 110. The Special Rapporteur learned that, to counter the above-mentioned bill, the federal Government had introduced another bill to lengthen the maximum time of detention in socioeducational centres from the current three years to up to 10 years. 111. This proposal seems to similarly undermine the rights granted to children and adolescents under international and federal law, and to seriously hamper the education and reintegration of adolescents into society. In a worst-case scenario, both bills could potentially be passed. 112. The Special Rapporteur urges Congress to abstain from passing the proposed constitutional amendments and allow children and adolescents to continue enjoying the safeguards granted to them. 17