Case against a serviceman under Article 172-20(3) CUAO closed
The client’s problem
A serviceman approached DSA GROUP after administrative proceedings had been brought against him under Article 172-20(3) of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offences (CUAO): according to the offence report, on 13 April 2026, during the special period, he had performed military duties under the influence of alcohol.
What our lawyer did
The client was represented in court by attorney Pavlo Ivchenko. He moved to close the proceedings and drew the court’s attention to the following:
- the medical examination had been carried out without a special technical device;
- no laboratory tests of biological samples had been performed;
- the medical examination report had been drawn up on the form approved by order of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Ministry of Health, not under the Procedure approved by Ministry of Defence Order No. 241 of 16 April 2025, which applies specifically to military personnel;
- the case file lacked the certificate on the results of the medical examination required by that Procedure;
- no other proper and admissible evidence had been presented that the serviceman had been intoxicated while performing military duties.
Outcome
By a ruling of 6 May 2026, the Ratnivskyi District Court of Volyn Oblast agreed with the defence: a medical examination report drawn up in breach of the requirements is invalid. The client had not been charged with refusing an examination, and a court may not change the facts set out in the offence report on its own initiative or look for evidence in support of the charge. The proceedings were closed for lack of the elements of an administrative offence. The ruling became final on 19 May 2026.
