Moldovan top court rules that fine worth 22,500 lei for non-observance of epidemiological rules unconstitutional

Chisinau, 30 June /MOLDPRES/ - The Constitutional Court (CCM) has declared unconstitutional the fine of 450 contravention units for the non-observance of the epidemiological rules during the COVID-19 pandemic.

At a today’s session, CCM of Moldova ruled that the existence of a minimal limit of civil fine of 450 contravention units does not give the law court possibility of individualizing the criminal sanctions and declared this limit unconstitutional. ‘’The limit of 450 contravention units is declared unconstitutional; this limit does not give the law court possibility of individualizing the sanction,’’ President of the Constitutional Court Domnica Manole said.    

According to the constitutional judge, till the current legal framework is amended, a fine ranging from a convention unit and 500 convention units will be imposed to a private person who infringed the epidemiological rules during the COVID-19 pandemic.  

“The inspector examiners will establish the fine, depending on the circumstances of each case,’’ Manole noted.

We remind that a contravention unit is worth 50 lei. Presently, the civil sanctions for the violation of the anti-COVID measures are worth from 450 to 500 contravention units, imposed to a private person and from 1,000 to 1,500 contravention units imposed to a legal entity. The authors of the notification at the Constitutional Court pointed out the disproportionality of these sanctions.