7 its part, the I/A Court HR has indicated that although every criminal investigation must satisfy a series of legal requirements, the rule of prior exhaustion of domestic remedies should not lead to a halt or delay of international action to assist the victims that would render such action ineffective.6 29. In the instant case, after the alleged reported acts of torture that occurred in May 2000, an investigation was launched followed by a criminal case in the ordinary criminal jurisdiction, which would be in its preliminary procedural stages.7 As reported, the preliminary hearing had been convened for July 2012, although to date the results of that preliminary hearing have not been reported. In this respect, the Commission notes that, after twelve years, the criminal process is in the preliminary stage and the State has not provided information regarding new actions or decisions issued subsequent to the referenced convening of the preliminary hearing. As a result, the IACHR believes that the exception established in Article 46.2.c) of the American Convention is applicable. 30. Finally, it should be indicated that invocation of the exceptions to the exhaustion of domestic remedies provided in Article 46.2 of the Convention is closely linked with the determination of possible violations of certain rights enshrined therein, such as guarantees on access to justice. However, Article 46.2, based on its nature and purpose, is a provision with autonomous content relative to the substantive provisions of the Convention. Therefore, the determination as to whether the exceptions to the exhaustion of domestic remedies rule are applicable to the case must be made prior to and separately from analysis of the merits of the case, in that it depends on a standard of assessment different from that used to determine the possible violation of Articles 8 and 25 of the Convention. 2. Deadline for submitting a petition to the Commission 31. The Convention establishes that in order for a petition to be admissible by the Commission, it must be submitted within a period of six months from the date when the alleged injury party was notified of a final decision. In the complaint under review, the IACHR has established the applicability of the exceptions to the exhaustion of domestic remedies in accordance with Article 46.2.c of the Convention. In this regard, Article 32 of the Commission’s Rules of Procedure establishes that in cases in which the exceptions to the prior exhaustion of domestic remedies are applicable, the petition must be submitted within a reasonable period of time. To this end, the Commission must consider the date on which the alleged violation of rights occurred and the circumstances in each case. 32. In the instant case, the petition was received on December 11, 2000, the facts covered in the petition occurred starting in May 2000, and the effects thereof in terms of the alleged lack of results from the administration of justice continue to this day. Therefore, in view of the context and the characteristics of the case, as well as the fact that the court case continues pending in the initial stages, the Commission deems that the petition was submitted within a reasonable period of time and that the admissibility requirement with respect to the submission deadline has been met. 6 I/A Court H.R., Velásquez Rodríguez v. Honduras Case. Preliminary Objections. Judgment of June 26, 1987. Series C No. 1, para. 93. 7 It should be noted that the assessment regarding this admissibility requirement is performed when deciding on the admissibility of the petition and not when the petition is received. See, inter alia, IACHR, Report No. 25/04, Case 12.361 (“Ana Victoria Sánchez Villalobos et al."), March 11, 2004, Costa Rica, para. 45; Report No. 50/04 (Admissibility – Petition 12.056, Gabriel Oscar Jenkins v. Argentina); October 13, 2004; para. 50; Report No. 20/05, Petition 714/00 (“Rafael Correa Díaz”), February 25, 2005, Peru, para. 32.