REFORM OF CRIMINAL PROCEEDINGS OF THE REPUBLIC OF SERBIA - FROM WITNESS ASSOCIATE TO DEFENDANT ASSOCIATE.

The first indicator of the influence of adversarial elements in the criminal procedure of the Republic of Serbia was the establishment of the institute of cooperating witnesses less than two decades ago. Until 2011, the Code of Criminal Procedure was amended several times, so the material conditions for acquiring this procedural status changed accordingly. The final break with the long-standing criminal tradition was made, first by giving the defendant the opportunity to be a party in concluding a plea agreement, then guilt, and then from 2011 a party in concluding a testimony agreement. The paper first presents a comparative overview of the institute of witnesses associated in the domestic legislative framework through long - term legislation, and then points out their similarities and differences through certain specifics of the institute of cooperating witnesses. As the newly established legislation is not harmonized with the new procedural institute, it is pointed out the need to supplement the current legal solutions, especially in the part related to the procedural and program protection of the defendant associate. The focus of the subject is on criminal acts of organized crime. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]