Aim: The aim of the study is to observe how the tradition of the past is reflected in the first stage of domestic criminal procedure and how the relationship between the investigating authority and the prosecution has evolved over the last fifty years, examining also the contemporary solutions of the 1896 Code.
Methodology: To compare previous and existing legislation on the subject, identifying the links between them and analyze the available literature.
Findings: Criminal procedure is still a stage-by-stage process, in which – although partly in line with the general principles of cognitive theory, but still different from it – a specific cognitive process takes place. The roles of the investigating authority and the prosecution vary from time to time in different national procedural codes; the relationship between the two authorities is not stable. Although the legislator often relies on the solutions of the past, they are overridden by everyday practice.
Value: Exploring the background to the different solutions used in domestic criminal procedure.