The Human Rights and Civil Integration, and the Legal Issues Committees held a joint sitting to hear the Report on the Activities of the Prosecutor’s Office of Georgia in 2025, presented by the Prosecutor General of Georgia, Giorgi Gvarakidze.

“In 2025, we updated the Criminal Justice Policy Guidelines, whose main priorities remain the protection of victims’ rights and legitimate interests, coordination of efforts to combat crime, strengthening public confidence in security and the rule of law, and crime prevention”, - the Prosecutor General stated.

According to Giorgi Gvarakidze, the function of criminal prosecution is a key indicator that accurately reflects the country’s crime situation, the timeliness of responses to crime, and existing challenges. He noted that the rate of criminal prosecution remained high in 2025, affecting 25,086 individuals, representing a significant increase compared to previous years.

“Just as in the previous five years, the statistics for the most common crimes remained largely unchanged in 2025, including property crimes, drug-related offences, and domestic violence. Criminal prosecution was initiated most frequently for drug-related offences, which accounted for 19.7% of all cases. Compared to the previous year, the number of prosecutions for this category of crime doubled, making it the most prevalent offence category”, - said the Prosecutor General.

He emphasized that the use of amnesty measures by the state and alternative prosecution mechanisms by prosecutors enables defendants to receive a second chance and continue their lives without a criminal record: “In 2025, criminal prosecutions were most frequently terminated in fraud cases through the application of amnesty, alternative prosecution mechanisms, and other legal grounds. These were followed by cases involving violence, document forgery, theft, and intentional minor bodily injury”.

The Prosecutor General further stated that criminal justice policy is clearly reflected in the practice of applying preventive measures.

“Over the past six years, the number of individuals for whom prosecutors requested preventive measures has increased. For example, while such measures were sought for approximately 15,000 individuals in 2020, the figure exceeded 23,000 in 2025. Despite this upward trend, the share of custodial preventive measures continues to decline. The Prosecutor’s Office will continue to support policies aimed at reducing the use of pre-trial detention. Of all motions submitted to courts in 2025 requesting preventive measures, detention was sought for 35.1% of defendants, while non-custodial preventive measures were requested for 64.9%”, - he stated.

According to the Prosecutor General, the practice of maintaining a strict policy toward domestic violence offences also influences the frequency of detention requests, with detention being requested in 87% of domestic crime cases. During his presentation, Giorgi Gvarakidze highlighted the results of prosecution efforts and noted that first-instance courts delivered judgments against 20,922 individuals in 2025, the highest figure recorded in the last five years. He attributed this to intensified efforts against specific categories of crime: “Over the past 6 years, the proportion of acquittals among judgments delivered following full hearings has steadily increased, reaching 17% in 2025. In domestic crime cases, the acquittal rate stood at 11.4%, which is attributable to a range of factors”.

He further explained that the Prosecutor’s Office has adopted a policy encouraging the use of plea agreements and discretionary powers in certain categories of offences, which contributes to swift justice, the timely restoration of victims’ rights, and the efficient use of human and material resources: “The upward trend in the use of plea agreements continued in 2025, reaching 86.5% - the highest level recorded over the past five years and 12.8 percentage points higher than the previous year’s record. The high rate of plea agreements concluded at the early stages of investigations was also maintained, standing at 65.8%”.

According to Giorgi Gvarakidze, the use of fines as a form of punishment remains high and continues to increase annually. In 2025, fines accounted for 58.7% of sentences imposed, while the total amount exceeded GEL 57 million.

The Prosecutor General stressed that the Prosecutor’s Office continues to pursue a strict and consistent criminal policy toward perpetrators of serious and particularly serious violent crimes: “As in the previous five years, imprisonment was imposed in 100% of cases involving intentional homicide and aggravated intentional homicide. The imprisonment rate for robbery remained stable at 95%. In cases of intentional grievous bodily injury, the share of imprisonment sentences increased by 4 percentage points compared to the previous year, reaching 78%”.

Speaking about the existing diversion programme, Giorgi Gvarakidze noted that 2,499 adults benefited from diversion in 2025, of whom 2,271 had been charged with less serious offences. The Prosecutor General also stated that implementing a victim-oriented criminal justice policy and strengthening the protection of victims’ rights remain strategic priorities for the Prosecutor’s Office of Georgia. According to him, victim status was granted to 17,209 individuals in 2025, with 91.8% of them being adults. Citizens were most frequently affected by theft, domestic violence, violence-related offences, fraud, and transport-related crimes. Giorgi Gvarakidze further stated that throughout 2025, the Prosecutor’s Office placed particular emphasis on protecting the rights of juveniles and persons with disabilities and improving the quality of justice through case monitoring, research and analytical activities, the development of guidelines and informational materials, and enhanced cooperation with specialized institutions working in these areas.

The Prosecutor General also reviewed the annual results of efforts to combat prevalent, priority, and organized crimes. Following the presentation, Giorgi Gvarakidze answered questions from Members of Parliament. The Committees positively assessed the Report on the Activities of the Prosecutor’s Office of Georgia in 2025.