Prison and Court Guard Service

The Corps of Prison and Court Guard (hereinafter "the Corps") is an armed security service that fulfills the tasks linked not only to execution of pre-trial detention and prison sentence, protection and guarding of the Corps’ buildings but also to the protection of order and security in the premises of prosecution offices and courts in the territory of Slovakia and future psychiatric penitentiary facility. Besides other specific tasks in the field of penitentiary care defined by the law, it executes escorts of pre-trial detainees and prisoners in the territory of the Slovak Republic, ensures activities focused on employment of pre-trial detainees and prisoners.The most significant part of the Corps activities remains with the treatment of prisoners considering deprivation of liberty as a form of punishment. The Corps activities are stipulated in the special Act No. 4/2001 Coll. on the Corps of Prison and Court Guard that defines its scope, competencies and obligations of the prison officers. The Corps is structured as follows: General Directorate, remand prisons, prisons, prison for juveniles and prison hospital. General Directorate and prisons as independent government organizations are established and dissolved by the Ministry of Justice of the Slovak Republic. General Directorate manages and controls all prison facilities. The Corps is subordinated to the Minister of Justice; it is headed by the Director General who is appointed and removed from the office by the Minister. Director General is accountable to the Minister. Prisons are headed by Prison Governors who are appointed and removed from the office by the Director General. Prison Governors are accountable to the Director General.