Criminal
The 2017 Penal Code, which abolished the death penalty for ordinary crimes
The Penal Code of 2017 replaced the 1967 text, abolishing capital punishment for ordinary offences while initially retaining it for terrorism, which was removed in 2020. It also criminalised child marriage and female genital mutilation.
Key rules
- Jurisdiction — Tribunaux de première instance and Cours d'appel; the Cour suprême reviews.
- Deadline — Garde à vue: 48 hours, extendable
- Deadline — Appeal: fifteen days from judgment
Governing law
- Loi n° 001/PR/2017 portant Code pénal
- Loi n° 2020-09 abolishing the death penalty for terrorism offences
- Code de procédure pénale
In practice
The 2017 recodification and the 2020 amendment together made Chad fully abolitionist in law, a notable position in the Sahel, while the same code introduced offences against child marriage that reflect the country's very high historic rate of early marriage.