A/HRC/4/40/Add.3 page 9 25. Within no more than 12 hours after taking a person into custody, police officers must inform the Public Prosecutor’s Office of such action and of the measures that have been taken. The detainee must be brought before a competent judge within the period of 48 hours stipulated in the Constitution. The detainee’s family must be informed by the police within a period of 24 hours of his or her detention and of the police station in which he or she is being held. There is no judicial supervision of cells situated in police stations. 26. The delegation learned that, notwithstanding the provisions of the court order, police chiefs interpret the obligation imposed by the Constitution as obliging them merely to inform the competent judge of the detention and to place the detained person formally at the disposition of the judge, without producing them in person. 27. Police records are not included as part of the case file. (b) Preliminary hearing 28. Once a person has been taken into custody, the proceedings against him or her commence with a preliminary hearing. The purpose of such hearings is to notify the detainee of the charges brought by the Public Prosecutor’s Office; to rule on the application for interim protection measures; and to uphold the right to defence. The preliminary hearing must be held within 48 hours of a person being taken into custody, measured from the moment when he or she is brought before the competent judge. If the prosecutor does not file charges, the judge must order the immediate release of the detainee. The judge must inform the detainee that he or she has the option to appoint a private lawyer and, if the detainee is unable to afford the associated costs, the judge shall proceed to assign a defence lawyer from the Public Defender’s Office or another officially appointed lawyer. Failure by the lawyer to attend the preliminary hearing does not invalidate the hearing. The victim has the right to participate in this hearing. (c) Initial hearing 29. If, at the preliminary hearing, the pretrial custody of the accused is ordered, the judge must also set a date within the following 10 days for the conduct of the initial hearing. The initial hearing is held for the purpose of determining if there are grounds to commit to trial; initiating the procedures for the exchange of evidence; to review the interim protection measures which have been applied; and to determine procedural acts which should be conducted prior to the trial. Preliminary hearings must be attended by the accused, their defence lawyers and representatives of the Public Prosecutor’s Office. It is at this hearing that the representatives of the Public Prosecutor’s Office and the individual prosecuting party must submit to the court evidence establishing reasonable and sufficient grounds to commit the accused to trial. 30. If, in the opinion of the judge, the evidentiary elements submitted by the prosecution are insufficient, the judge shall request additional evidentiary elements, which must be provided within a period of five days. If the judge still considers that the additional evidentiary elements that have been provided remain insufficient, he or she shall close the case and order the release of the detainee.