Morocco Introduces Alternative Sentencing Law, Reducing Prison Terms for Minor Offenses

Law No. 43.22 on alternative sentences not only excludes serious crimes and repeat offenders, but also provides for measures to repair the damage caused by the crime. The text defines alternative sentences as "sentences imposed in lieu of custodial sentences for offenses whose sentence does not exceed five years’ imprisonment". Alternative sentences are defined as community service, electronic monitoring, restriction of certain rights or the imposition of supervision, treatment or rehabilitation measures, as well as the daily fine, specifies Article 2-35 of the law. According to Article 14-35, the court can also pronounce a daily fine in lieu of imprisonment, setting an amount for each day of the prison sentence imposed. This daily fine can also be applied to minors with the agreement of their legal representative. The daily fine can only be imposed after proof of reconciliation or waiver by the victim or their relatives, or if the convicted person has repaired the damage caused by the crime. Article 35-15 sets the amount of the daily fine between 100 and 2,000 dirhams per day of imprisonment imposed.

According to Article 3-35, alternative sentences cannot be applied to offenses related to crimes against state security and terrorism; embezzlement or corruption; abuse of power; waste of public funds; money laundering; military crimes; international drug trafficking; trafficking in psychotropic substances; trafficking in human organs; sexual exploitation of minors or disabled persons. As for Article 5-35, it clearly indicates that the court can order a community service sentence in lieu of imprisonment if the convicted person is at least 15 years old at the time of sentencing. This work is unpaid and must be carried out over a period of 40 hours to 3,600 hours for the benefit of state services, local authorities, institutions or organizations working for rights and freedoms, good governance, public or charitable institutions, places of worship, or other non-governmental organizations working for the common good.

What about the restriction of certain rights or the imposition of supervision, treatment or rehabilitation measures? Article 12-35 of the law allows for the pronouncement of one or more of these measures, such as: exercising a professional activity or following a specific vocational training; residence in a specified place with a prohibition to leave it or to leave it at certain times; prohibition to frequent certain places or at certain times; supervision with an obligation to appear at specific dates, either at the prison, or at the police station or the Royal Gendarmerie, or at the social assistance office of the court; prohibition to contact or approach the victims of the crime; follow-up of a psychological or anti-drug treatment; reparation of the damage caused by the crime. As for electronic monitoring as an alternative to imprisonment, it consists in the electronic monitoring of the movements and displacements of the convicted person by one or more approved monitoring devices, specifies the text. The court determines the place and duration of the monitoring taking into account the seriousness of the crime, the personal and professional circumstances of the convicted person, the safety of the victims and the respect of the personal rights of the persons accompanying the convicted person.