Legal Analysis of The Position of The Prosecutor as Dominus Litis and The Limits of Prosecution Discretion Within The Framework of Due Process of Law
Abstract
The prosecutor's position as Dominus Litis places the Indonesian Attorney General's Office as an institution with central authority in determining the continuation of the prosecution process of a criminal case. The strengthening of this authority is in line with the development of the criminal justice system and regulations regarding prosecutorial discretion that provide space for prosecutors to determine case handling policies based on legal considerations and the public interest. On the other hand, the use of prosecutorial discretion has the potential to lead to abuse of authority if not limited by the principle of Due Process of Law. The problems in this study include the position of the prosecutor as dominus litis, the implementation of prosecutorial discretion, and the limits of prosecutorial discretion within the framework of Due Process of Law. This research is a normative legal study using statutory, conceptual, and comparative approaches. The research data consists of primary, secondary, and tertiary legal materials analyzed qualitatively. The research results show that prosecutors, as dominus litis, have the authority to determine the direction and continuation of the prosecution process in the Indonesian criminal justice system. The exercise of prosecutorial discretion is a consequence of this authority to realize effective law enforcement and justice. However, the use of prosecutorial discretion is not absolute and must be implemented based on the principles of legality, equality before the law, the presumption of innocence, proportionality, accountability, transparency, and protection of human rights as a manifestation of Due Process of Law. Therefore, an effective oversight and accountability mechanism is needed to prevent abuse of authority and ensure the realization of justice, legal certainty, and legal benefits in the Indonesian criminal justice system.
Keywords
Full Text:
PDFReferences
Journals:
Achmad Budi Waskito, “Implementasi Sistem Peradilan Pidana Dalam Perspektif Integrasi”, Jurnal Daulat Hukum, Vol. 1, No. 1, 2018.
Andrew Ashworth, “Four Threats to the Presumption of Innocence”, International Journal of Evidence & Proof, Vol. 10, No. 4, 2006.
Angela J. Davis, “The American Prosecutor: Independence, Power, and the Threat of Tyranny”, Iowa Law Review, Vol. 86, No. 2, 2001.
Erlina Dwi Virgianti dan Andri Winjaya Laksana, “Analisis Yuridis Terhadap Penghentian Penuntutan Melalui Rehabilitasi Berdasarkan Keadilan Restoratif (Studi Kasus: Kejaksaan Tinggi Jawa Timur)”, Jurnal Ilmiah Sultan Agung, 2026.
Maximo Langer, “Prosecutorial Discretion in Comparative Perspective”, Harvard International Law Journal, Vol. 62, No. 1, 2021.
Rachel E. Barkow, “Prosecutorial Administration: Prosecutor Bias and the Department of Justice”, Virginia Law Review, Vol. 99, No. 2, 2013.
Ronald F. Wright, “Trial Distortion and the End of Innocence in Federal Criminal Justice”, University of Pennsylvania Law Review, Vol. 154, No. 1, 2005.
Books:
Abdul Qadir Audah, At-Tasyri' al-Jina'i al-Islami Muqaranan bi al-Qanun al-Wadh'i, Juz I, Muassasah al-Risalah, Beirut, 1992.
Abdul Wahhab Khallaf, Al-Siyasah Al-Syar’iyyah, Dar Al-Qalam, Kuwait, 1988.
Abdul Wahhab Khallaf, Ilmu Ushul Fiqh, Dar al-Qalam, Kuwait, 1978.
Abu Ishaq Al-Syatibi, Al-Muwafaqat fi Ushul al-Syari'ah, Juz II, Dar al-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 2004.
Adami Chazawi, Pelajaran Hukum Pidana, RajaGrafindo Persada, Jakarta, 2014.
Ahmad Al-Mursi Husain Jauhar, Maqashid Syariah, terj. Hikmawati, Amzah, Jakarta, 2009.
Ahmad Wardi Muslich, Hukum Pidana Islam, Sinar Grafika, Jakarta, 2016.
Andi Hamzah, Hukum Acara Pidana Indonesia, Sinar Grafika, Jakarta, 2016.
Andrew Ashworth, Human Rights and Criminal Justice, Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2010.
Angela J. Davis, Arbitrary Justice: The Power of the American Prosecutor, Oxford University Press, New York, 2007.
Bagir Manan, Lembaga Kepresidenan, FH UII Press, Yogyakarta, 2003.
Bambang Sunggono, Metodologi Penelitian Hukum, Rajawali Pers, Jakarta, 2010.
Bambang Waluyo, Penegakan Hukum di Indonesia, Sinar Grafika, Jakarta, 2008.
Barda Nawawi Arief, Bunga Rampai Kebijakan Hukum Pidana, Citra Aditya Bakti, Bandung, 2013.
Barda Nawawi Arief, Kebijakan Hukum Pidana, Kencana, Jakarta, 2010.
Barda Nawawi Arief, Kebijakan Hukum Pidana: Perkembangan Penyusunan Konsep KUHP Baru, Kencana, Jakarta, 2017.
Barda Nawawi Arief, Masalah Penegakan Hukum dan Kebijakan Hukum Pidana dalam Penanggulangan Kejahatan, Kencana, Jakarta, 2010.
Barda Nawawi Arief, Mediasi Penal: Penyelesaian Perkara di Luar Pengadilan, Pustaka Magister, Semarang, 2012.
Barda Nawawi Arief, Pembaharuan Sistem Penegakan Hukum dengan Pendekatan Kebijakan, Kencana, Jakarta, 2018.
Barda Nawawi Arief, Reformasi Sistem Peradilan Pidana di Indonesia, Kencana, Jakarta, 2022.
E. Utrecht, Pengantar dalam Hukum Indonesia, Ichtiar Baru, Jakarta, 1983.
Eddy O.S. Hiariej dan Reda Manthovani, Anotasi Undang-Undang Nomor 20 Tahun 2025 tentang Kitab Undang-Undang Hukum Acara Pidana, Rajawali Pers, Jakarta, 2025.
Eddy O.S. Hiariej, Asas Legalitas dan Penemuan Hukum dalam Hukum Pidana, Erlangga, Jakarta, 2019.
Gustav Radbruch, Legal Philosophy, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, 1950.
Hans Kelsen, Pure Theory of Law, University of California Press, Berkeley, 1967.
Herbert L. Packer, The Limits of the Criminal Sanction, Stanford University Press, California, 1968.
Ibnu Qayyim Al-Jauziyyah, I’lam Al-Muwaqqi’in ‘an Rabb al-‘Alamin, Juz III, Dar al-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 1991.
Jimly Asshiddiqie, Konstitusi dan Konstitusionalisme Indonesia, Sinar Grafika, Jakarta, 2018.
Jimly Asshiddiqie, Peradilan Etik dan Etika Konstitusi, Sinar Grafika, Jakarta, 2015.
Jimly Asshiddiqie, Perkembangan dan Konsolidasi Lembaga Negara Pasca Reformasi, Sinar Grafika, Jakarta, 2010.
John Rawls, A Theory of Justice, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, 1971.
Lon L. Fuller, The Morality of Law, Yale University Press, New Haven, 1964.
M. Yahya Harahap, Pembahasan Permasalahan dan Penerapan KUHAP: Penyidikan dan Penuntutan, Sinar Grafika, Jakarta, 2016.
Mardjono Reksodiputro, Sistem Peradilan Pidana Indonesia, UI Press, Jakarta, 1993.
Mardjono Reksodiputro, Sistem Peradilan Pidana Indonesia: Melihat Kejahatan dan Penegakan Hukum dalam Batas-Batas Toleransi, Pusat Pelayanan Keadilan dan Pengabdian Hukum Universitas Indonesia, Jakarta, 2007.
Marwan Effendy, Kejaksaan RI: Posisi dan Fungsinya dari Perspektif Hukum, Gramedia Pustaka Utama, Jakarta, 2005.
Moeljatno, Asas-Asas Hukum Pidana, Rineka Cipta, Jakarta, 2008.
Muladi dan Barda Nawawi Arief, Teori-Teori dan Kebijakan Pidana, Alumni, Bandung, 2010.
Muladi, Kapita Selekta Sistem Peradilan Pidana, Badan Penerbit Universitas Diponegoro, Semarang, 1995.
Philipus M. Hadjon, Pengantar Hukum Administrasi Indonesia, Gadjah Mada University Press, Yogyakarta, 2011.
Philipus M. Hadjon, Perlindungan Hukum Bagi Rakyat di Indonesia, Bina Ilmu, Surabaya, 1987.
Prajudi Atmosudirdjo, Hukum Administrasi Negara, Ghalia Indonesia, Jakarta, 1994.
R. Soeprapto, Sejarah Perkembangan Kejaksaan Republik Indonesia, Kejaksaan Agung Republik Indonesia, Jakarta, 1987.
Reda Manthovani, Diskresi Penuntutan dalam Sistem Peradilan Pidana Modern, Rajawali Pers, Jakarta, 2024.
Ridwan HR, Hukum Administrasi Negara, RajaGrafindo Persada, Jakarta, 2020.
Romli Atmasasmita, Sistem Peradilan Pidana Kontemporer, Kencana, Jakarta, 2011.
Satjipto Rahardjo, Hukum Progresif: Sebuah Sintesa Hukum Indonesia, Genta Publishing, Yogyakarta, 2009.
Satjipto Rahardjo, Ilmu Hukum, Citra Aditya Bakti, Bandung, 2014.
Satjipto Rahardjo, Penegakan Hukum: Suatu Tinjauan Sosiologis, Genta Publishing, Yogyakarta, 2009.
Soerjono Soekanto dan Sri Mamudji, Penelitian Hukum Normatif: Suatu Tinjauan Singkat, RajaGrafindo Persada, Jakarta, 2007.
Soerjono Soekanto, Pengantar Penelitian Hukum, UI Press, Jakarta, 1986.
Sudikno Mertokusumo, Mengenal Hukum Suatu Pengantar, Liberty, Yogyakarta, 2007.
Tony F. Marshall, Restorative Justice: An Overview, Home Office Research Development and Statistics Directorate, London, 1999.
Topo Santoso, Asas-Asas Hukum Pidana Islam, Rajawali Pers, Jakarta, 2016.
Wahbah Az-Zuhaili, Ushul al-Fiqh al-Islami, Juz II, Dar al-Fikr, Damaskus, 1986.
Wayne R. LaFave, Jerold H. Israel, Nancy J. King, dan Orin S. Kerr, Criminal Procedure, 6th Edition, West Academic Publishing, St. Paul, 2017.
Yusuf Al-Qaradawi, Fiqh al-Daulah fi al-Islam, Maktabah Wahbah, Kairo, 1997.
Regulation:
Law Number 11 of 2012 concerning the Juvenile Criminal Justice System.
Law Number 11 of 2021 concerning Amendments to Law Number 16 of 2004 concerning the Attorney General's Office of the Republic of Indonesia.
Law Number 20 of 2025 concerning the Criminal Procedure Code.
Regulation of the Attorney General of the Republic of Indonesia Number 15 of 2020 concerning Termination of Prosecution Based on Restorative Justice.
The 1945 Constitution of the Republic of Indonesia.
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.30659/rlj.5.3.3827-3844
Refbacks
- There are currently no refbacks.
Ratio Legis Journal has been indexed in:
