Protection of the Public from Criminal Organizations Bill

What does the bill do?

Under the law it was provided, as a temporary provision for two years, that the president of the district court or their deputy may, at the request of the Police Commissioner or an officer with the rank of major general serving as head of the Investigations and Intelligence Division of the Israel Police, and after the approval of the Attorney General or whoever they authorized for this on their behalf or delegated their authority to, impose restrictions by order on a person operating within a criminal organization, if convinced that there is a reasonable basis to assume that issuing the order and the restrictions set in it, taking into account the level of risk posed by that person, is essential to prevent serious harm to a person's safety, and that the purpose of the order cannot be achieved through criminal law and by a less harmful means (hereinafter – a judicial restriction order). The restrictions that can be imposed as stated are listed in the law, and include, among other things, a restriction on entering a place in the country, a ban on leaving the place of residence, a ban on contact with a person and even a ban on leaving the country. At the same time, it was provided that the validity of an order issued will not exceed two months, except for an order concerning the restriction of a ban on leaving the place of residence, whose validity will not exceed 45 days. An order may be imposed for a shorter period, and extended for additional periods that cumulatively do not exceed the maximum period. However, there is nothing to prevent ordering the issuance of a new judicial restriction order at the end of the maximum period. Beyond that, the court that issued the order may set in it powers for the Israel Police to ensure compliance with the order, including entering a place used as the residence of the person against whom the order was issued, searching their body and accessing computer material in their possession or control. Additional arrangements were also set in the law, among them: the procedure for filing the request to issue such an order and the hearing of the request, reconsideration of the request and appeal, arrest authority against a person who violated a judicial restriction order, including a prison sentence of four years that will not be less than a quarter of the sentence, unless the court decided to reduce the sentence for special reasons to be recorded, as well as a duty of the Minister of National Security to report to the Knesset's National Security Committee once every four months on the implementation of the law.