Termination of a criminal case by reconciliation of the parties, sample statement of reconciliation with the victim

What does reconciliation of the parties mean?

It is clear that this term should not be taken literally - the participants in the trial (the so-called “parties”) may not become friends, be friends with families, no longer “bear a grudge” against each other, etc. Moreover, the victim may never forgive the inconvenience caused by the crime. At the same time, if the victim voices demands that will satisfy him and the defendant agrees with these demands, the court may issue a decision to dismiss the case.

Example No. 1 . During the consideration of the case in the district court, the victim Nikonova P.A., from whom funds in the amount of 6,000 rubles were stolen, filed a petition for reconciliation, since she was fully compensated for the damage caused by the crime (6,000 rubles) and “paid for” moral suffering , which she transferred (4,000 rubles, and a total of 10,000 rubles). At the same time, the victim explained that she did not even want to see the defendant (he was her former partner), hated him and declared termination only because she did not want a lengthy trial in the case, but she was indeed compensated for the damage and was quite satisfied with the amount of money paid . The court decided to dismiss the case due to reconciliation.

This procedure is applicable at any stage of a criminal case: both during the inquiry (investigation) and during the trial, it is regulated by Article 25 of the Criminal Procedure Code of the Russian Federation and Article 76 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. At the same time, the number of cases of termination of cases due to compensation for harm at the pre-trial stages is practically reduced to a few. This is partly due to the fact that law enforcement agencies need positive statistics on the referral of cases of solved crimes to court. At the same time, the participants are explained the right to declare this again in court.

Few people appeal the investigator’s decision to refuse to reconcile the parties, since often by the time such a complaint is considered, in fact, the case is already at the stage of judicial review, so the meaning of the request to recognize such a refusal as illegal is lost.

Example No. 2 .
The Ivanovs quarreled; during the conflict, Ivanov beat his wife, causing her moderate harm (injuring her hand). Ivanova immediately wrote a statement to the police and insisted that her husband be prosecuted. A few days later she “cooled down” and came to withdraw her statement, since she and her husband had reconciled and forgiven each other. Ivanova wrote a new statement in which she asked to stop the case. The investigator issued a decision to refuse such a request, citing the fact that this is a right and not an obligation of an official. Having received the decision in their hands, the Ivanovs appealed it to the court, pointing out that their rights were being violated in this way. By the time the complaint was considered, a personal injury case had also been filed with the court. At the very first court hearing, the court decided to terminate due to the reconciliation of the parties based on the victim’s newly filed petition. The proceedings on the complaint were terminated without issuing a decision, which was no longer necessary.

Explanation of the terms of reconciliation

A citizen who has committed an unlawful act for the first time is characterized by the following criteria:

He has never been prosecuted before.
If earlier, a sentence was passed against the citizen, but it did not receive legal force.
For a previous illegal crime, the statute of limitations has already expired.
The existing criminal record has already been fully expunged or removed.
Due to the changes made, the act committed by a citizen does not apply to criminal offenses.
For various reasons, the person was completely released from criminal liability.

Compensation for damage caused by illegal actions is possible in various ways:

Cash.
Providing necessary assistance to the victim.
A public apology for a crime committed.
Other measures that restore the lost interests of the injured party.

All possible methods of compensation for damage must be legal and not violate the rights of other citizens.

Who can declare reconciliation

According to the law, the injured party can request this. It would seem that everything is simple - if there is a victim in the case, based on his application (petition), a decision can be made to terminate the case. At the same time, he will need to justify his appeal: to what extent the damage was compensated, whether an apology was made, the damage was made up for in another way (for example, assistance was provided in something, etc.).

At the same time, in practice some conflicts arise, which are resolved in each case individually, for example:

A fatal accident has occurred, the victim is dead

In this case, according to the norms of the criminal procedure law, a representative of the victim, one of the relatives, participates in the case. Such a representative has almost all the rights that the victim would have if he were still alive. At the same time, an application from the representative of the deceased for reconciliation with the culprit of the accident may not be satisfied, even in the case of compensation for damage in a fairly large amount.

Example No. 3 . Sergeev P.A., while driving a vehicle, hit a girl at a pedestrian crossing, causing her death. The representative of the deceased, her natural mother, announced reconciliation with the perpetrator in connection with compensation for damages in the amount of one million rubles. At the same time, the girl’s father, questioned during the court hearing, explained that he and his mother had been divorced for several years, during which she had accumulated numerous loans and was now not paying them off. According to the father, the ex-wife, declaring that the harm has been smoothed out, thus wants to solve her financial problems. The court refused reconciliation, the appeals were rejected, and a sentence was imposed in the case.

Let us immediately note that judicial practice is far from uniform in the regions, so in a similar situation the decision may be completely opposite. But the court’s attention to the position of the victim’s representative is always closer than to the actual victim.

Committed violence against a police officer

Example No. 4 . Malicious violator of public order Seroglazov R.D. when he was detained for an administrative offense, he resisted the police and strongly pushed Sergeant P.R. Kozlov, who fell and injured his leg. The case was initiated under Art. 318 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation for the use of violence not dangerous to life and health against a police representative. In court, Kozlov stated that he and R.D. Seroglazov. reconciled, asked to stop the case. The court rejected this application, since the crime was directed against state power, with which it was impossible to reconcile. Kozlov P.R., as stated in the resolution, is only a representative of this government, and making amends for the harm caused to him personally from bodily injury does not entail the termination of the criminal case as a whole.

Such decisions almost always remain in force, whereas earlier, about 10 years ago, reconciliation with the victim was often allowed under similar articles.

It happens that social services act as a representative of the victim

This often occurs when children have no parents (for example, a crime was committed against a child from an orphanage) or low-income citizens who do not have a permanent place of residence have no relatives. In such situations, a statement about compensation for damage from government representatives of the victim itself raises doubts - an outsider cannot fully know the depth of the suffering caused and make an objective conclusion about the sufficiency of the amount of harm caused. Typically, courts refuse to satisfy such requests from social service officials.

When reconciliation is impossible

Participants can reconcile if one of the parties submits a corresponding petition to the judge. But in some cases this may not be enough, even if the perpetrator sincerely repents and is ready to compensate the victim for material damage.

Reconciliation is impossible in the following situations:

The crime was committed on the basis of intolerance. We are talking about manifestations of racism, Nazism, hatred on religious grounds, etc.
One citizen slandered another. Here it is necessary to take into account the circumstances under which false information was disseminated. If a person denounces a neighbor because of personal hostility, the case may be closed. If hatred arose due to political, religious or other reasons of social significance, reconciliation will be impossible.
The criminal's motives were hooligan, demonstrating disrespect for moral standards, personality, and the established order.

Reconciliation in the situations described above is not practiced for the reason that the actions of the perpetrator are of a mass nature. There is no guarantee that after the termination of the criminal case, the defendant will not resume criminal activity. Attackers driven by the motives described above pose a danger to society. Therefore, the criminal must be punished.

Grounds and procedure for filing an application

Before drawing up a petition, you should once again recall the grounds on which reconciliation is permissible by law:

1. At the time of the commission of the crime, the perpetrator must not have previously been convicted. The fact is that the law provides a “benefit” in the form of termination of the case only for citizens brought to criminal responsibility for the first time.

In practice, situations arise when a person has not yet been convicted of a previous crime or has already been convicted, but the sentence has not entered into legal force. Let us remind you that only someone who has been declared guilty by a court verdict that has entered into legal force can be considered guilty. The Supreme Court of the Russian Federation, in its explanations, indicated in detail that if there is a charge brought, but not confirmed by a verdict, the person is considered unconvicted - this means that reconciliation for a repeat crime is possible.

Example No. 5 . Pavlov N.A. accused of two counts of theft committed by him on November 30, 2016 and December 1, 2016. According to the first episode, harm N.A. Pavlov did not compensate, did not admit guilt. In the second episode, Pavlov fully compensated the damage to the victim P.A. Ryabinin, apologized and admitted guilt. Ryabinin P.A. announced the termination of the case, since he had no claims against the defendant, he was satisfied with the amount paid to him. The court dismissed the case, despite the fact that at the time of consideration of Ryabinin’s petition, Pavlov N.A. was actually already charged for theft on November 30, 2016. Since there was no final verdict for the previous theft, the court considered Pavlov to be involved for the first time.

Thus, to be “brought to justice for the first time” within the meaning of the provisions of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, which provide for the reconciliation of the parties, means not to have a conviction at the time of consideration of the issue.

2. The category of crimes for which this procedure for terminating a case is applicable should not be grave or particularly grave. In other words, reconciliation is possible only in cases of acts for which the term does not exceed five years of imprisonment.

In practice, the question may arise whether it is possible to reconcile in cases where the sanction of the article does not provide for deprivation of liberty as a form of punishment at all.

Example No. 6 . Accused Kurochkin E.P. caused serious harm to health through negligence to E.R. Igolkin, with whom he subsequently made peace by paying compensation for the damage. Igolkin R.E. sent the court an application to terminate the case initiated under Art. 118 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, the sanction of which does not provide for imprisonment as a punishment. Thus, the article provides for the possibility of imposing a fine, compulsory or correctional labor. The court rightfully granted the applicant's request, since such crimes are classified as minor crimes and reconciliation of the parties in court regarding them is allowed.

3. There must be full compensation for the harm to the victim, while statements of only intentions to pay the victim money in the future are not allowed. The amount must actually be transferred at the time of consideration of the issue of termination of the case.

Example No. 7 . Lopatin E.M. committed a robbery against Divina O.L., snatching her bag from her hands. Subsequently, all the stolen property Lopatin E.M. sold it on the market to an unidentified person, but admitted guilt in the crime and agreed to compensate for the damage caused by his actions in the amount of 15,000 rubles. Lopatin E.M. explained that today he does not have such funds, but undertakes to fully repay the debt within two months, when he gets a job. Divina agreed and wrote a statement in which she asked the court to stop the prosecution against Lopatin, since the latter promised her to compensate her for the harm caused. The court rejected O.L. Divina’s request, indicating in the ruling that the intention to fulfill the obligation to pay for damages in the future cannot be a basis for dismissing the case. In relation to Lopatin E.M. a guilty verdict was handed down and punishment was imposed.

We add that the amount of money paid to the victim may differ from the one indicated in the case, both up and down. The main thing is that this amount suits the victim. Sometimes redress may be in the form of an apology, without a monetary amount.

Example No. 8 . As a result of arbitrariness, Trenev A.R. damage in the amount of 30,000 rubles was caused. The crime was initially caused by the illegal actions of A.R. Trenev, who illegally took possession of the property of E.P. Rakitov. and the latter had to reclaim his valuables by force. Trenev A.R. stated in court that he and the defendant made peace, forgave each other and made mutual apologies. When asked by the court whether it was enough for Trenev A.R. apology in order to consider the harm smoothed over, the victim responded positively. The court decided to terminate.

Example No. 9 . The victim P.R. Konyukhova, who suffered serious harm to her health (she lost hearing in one ear), filed a claim in court for much more than the treatment cost her. Konyukhova P.R. She justified her demands by saying that as a result of her deafness she had lost a good job and needed further rehabilitation. The defendant, whose actions the investigation regarded as careless, did not agree with the monetary demands that were inflated, from his point of view. As a result, the criminal case was not terminated.

Sometimes, especially in cases of detention of the defendant, relatives pay for it. The law does not prohibit compensation for harm to victims through third parties, so the court may well terminate proceedings in such a case.

4. Admission of guilt as a condition for making a decision on reconciliation is not specified in the law as mandatory.

At the same time, compensation for damage on the part of the defendant and his denial of involvement in the crime cannot be made at the same time. Therefore, it is assumed that the defendant, when considering the motion, agrees with the prosecution.

5. A written statement must be drawn up on the part of the victim.

Reaching an agreement with the injured party

For the accused, reconciliation of the parties in criminal proceedings with the injured party means the following actions:

Unconditional repentance.
Official apology.
Compensation for material and moral damage caused.

The main difficulty is determining the exact amount of compensation payments. They are established by mutual agreement of the parties. They must be justified and correspond to the level of harm caused.

The difficulty in determining the amount of compensation arises when determining the moral damage caused. As a result of the crime, the injured party may receive psychological trauma and assess the damage, which can be quite problematic. Negotiations between the parties to the conflict may reach a dead end due to demands for an inflated amount of compensation, which the suspect cannot pay under any circumstances.

To exclude such a situation, each party must provide justification for its position on this issue. If it is impossible to make a decision that suits both parties, it is necessary to involve a mediator from among lawyers who specializes in such issues.

How to write a statement

The law does not contain clear requirements for the form of a petition (application) for reconciliation of the parties in court. At the same time, within the meaning of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation and the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation, it must contain:

Name of the court where the applicant is applying.
Full name of the author, residential address, telephone number (optional), as well as status in the case: victim, representative of the victim; You can also indicate the number and date of the power of attorney if a representative of a legal entity is involved.
The essence: what the applicant is asking for (to terminate the criminal case on the grounds provided for in Article 25 of the Criminal Procedure Code of the Russian Federation, Article 76 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation).
Justification for your petition - that is, how exactly, in what amount or in what other form the damage is compensated. There must also be a record that there are no claims against the defendant.
Number, signature.

Assistance from lawyers

When planning to reconcile with an opponent, it is better for the plaintiff to consult with a specialized lawyer. A specialist will help determine requirements and assist in negotiations. Often people cannot accurately formulate all the conditions for reconciliation due to lack of experience, emotions, etc.

A lawyer will help you choose a more productive way of communication, taking into account legal norms and personal experience in negotiations. In addition, the lawyer is able to predict possible scenarios, determining the most beneficial solution for both parties.

Sample application for reconciliation of the parties

Use a sample application for reconciliation of parties in a criminal case (explanations are highlighted in blue):

To the Leninsky District Court of Moscow, Judge Ivanova N.O. victim in case No. 0000000 (it is not necessary to indicate the case number) Popov R.R., living at the address: Moscow, st. Moskovskaya, 1, apt. 1 tel. 8928000000

STATEMENT for reconciliation of parties in a criminal case

It does not make a significant difference what this document is called: it will not be a mistake if instead of “application” “petition” is indicated

I request that the criminal case against A.I. Borisov, accused under Part 1 of Art. 161 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, since we have reconciled.

You can briefly indicate the plot of the case:

Borisov A.I. 12/13/2016 he snatched the phone from my hands and ran away, subsequently selling it.

Next we indicate how the defendant compensated for the damage:

Borisov A.I. completely made amends for the harm caused to me in the amount of 15,000 rubles, and apologized. I have no complaints against A.I. Borisov. I don’t have any, I ask the court to dismiss the case for reconciliation of the parties.

It is advisable to include a receipt stating that the damage has actually been compensated, or refer to the following document already in the case:

Compensation for damage caused to me by A.I. Borisov is confirmed by a bank transfer receipt on case sheet No. 200, volume 2.

Also, some courts ask to indicate the following phrase:

On the consequences of termination of a criminal case under Art. 25 Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation, Art. 76 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation warned.

The consequences in this case mean the impossibility of prosecuting the culprit for the same unlawful act in the future. That is, if after some time the victim changes his mind or considers that the compensation was too small, it will be impossible to return to this issue and resume the investigation.

01.12.2016 Popov R.R., signature.

Conciliation procedure in civil proceedings

In accordance with the law, the most common form of reconciliation of parties in civil proceedings is the end of the case using a settlement agreement, as a result of a successful negotiation process (Part 1, Article 39 of the Code of Civil Procedure of the Russian Federation). The mandatory conditions for reaching a compromise are:

the conciliation procedure is allowed in 2 instances (Article 173, Article 326.1 of the Code of Civil Procedure);
the settlement agreement must comply with the norms of current legislation and not violate the interests of third parties (Part 2 of Article 39 of the Code of Civil Procedure);
the agreement of the parties must be approved by a court ruling, after which the process is considered completed, and the parties lose the opportunity to go to court again on this dispute (part 2, 3 of article 173, paragraph 3 of article 220 of the Code of Civil Procedure).

Another way to reconcile the parties is the mediation procedure, when the parties resort to the help of a qualified mediator to resolve the dispute. Based on the results of the procedure, a mediation agreement is drawn up. The conditions for the mediation procedure are:

the procedure can be carried out at the initiative of the parties or at the proposal of a judicial authority (clause 5, part 1, article 150, article 172 of the Code of Civil Procedure);
for the period of implementation of the procedure, the consideration of the civil case is postponed (part 1 of article 169 of the Civil Procedure Code);
the agreement can only be executed voluntarily (Part 2 of Article 12 of Federal Law No. 193-FZ);
this agreement can be used as a settlement agreement for approval by the court (Part 3 of Article 12 of the Federal Law No. 193-FZ).

It should be noted that mediation is not very common on the territory of the Russian Federation; it is still an incomprehensible innovation, and, therefore, is practically not used by the parties in civil proceedings.

Judicial procedure

Let us note some aspects of the reconciliation procedure itself:

The petition can be filed at any stage of the case, but a decision on it is made by the court after examining all the materials in the case. The victim submits a written statement directly to the judge, simultaneously voicing a summary.
The court asks the opinion of all participants in the process about the possibility of applying the rules of Art. 25 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation, including the accused. In some cases, defendants may object to dismissal of a case on this basis because it is non-exonerating. This means that this person will be considered held accountable and a note about this biographical fact will forever remain in the Information Information of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. In addition, the defendant will not be able to raise the issue of his illegal prosecution or compensation for moral damage in connection with this, as happens, for example, if a person is acquitted. If the defendant is against it (which is extremely rare), then the court agrees with his position and refuses reconciliation.
The opinion of other participants is heard by the court, but it is not binding on the court. Thus, if the public prosecutor objects to the termination, this does not prevent the court from making a positive decision. The court may also make a negative decision on the petition contrary to the opinion of all participants: for example, if everyone agrees with termination, but the court refuses. This is explained by the fact that for the court, termination is a right, not an obligation (with the exception of cases of private prosecution - for example, beatings - where the victim’s opinion on the closure of the criminal case is mandatory for the court).
The accused is also required to write a written statement of agreement with the termination of the case due to reconciliation, while a record of awareness with the consequences for him is mandatory.
It happens that the victim cannot or does not want to participate in the court hearing, but is not against dismissing the case and sends a statement by mail. In each such situation, the court decides on the possibility of satisfying the petition individually. If it is impossible to confirm the actual payment of damages using the case materials, the court may refuse.
Like any other decision, a decision to refuse to satisfy an application or to satisfy it can be appealed within 10 days by all participants in the process: the defendant, the defense attorney, the state prosecutor, the victim.

Closing the reconciliation case

Reconciliation of the parties in a criminal case before trial is allowed. Until the materials collected by law enforcement agencies have been sent to court, the investigator has the right to approve the termination of the investigation. To launch such a procedure, its initiator must enlist the support of the prosecutor. The main thing is that the victim writes and provides an appropriate statement, in which he outlines his desire to reconcile with the attacker. The moment when the reconciliation procedure can begin is not defined by law. This could be the time of:

Investigative actions.
Case consideration.

If the materials of the criminal case are transferred by the investigative authorities to the court, in order to reconcile the parties it is necessary to go through the following stages:

Agree on the amount of compensation that suits the victim.
Wait for the moment of full payment of compensation payments from the criminal.
Draw up and send to the court a petition for consent to reconcile the parties.

When considering the possibility of reconciliation between the parties, the court will necessarily take into account the opinions of all interested parties participating in the process. The accused must provide a counter-statement confirming his desire to terminate the criminal case due to the reconciliation of the parties. After considering all the circumstances of the case, the court will make a decision.

Even if everyone involved in the process wants to dismiss the case, the court may reject the request. Sometimes the accused himself does not want to terminate the investigation, in which case the court will certainly refuse the petition. A person suspected of committing a criminal offense almost always agrees to such a procedure. The reason for rare refusals is the inability to rehabilitate.

Let's sum it up

Voluntary initiative to apply Art. 25 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation must belong to the victim, the victim’s representative.
You can declare this either at the investigation stage (most often a refusal) or in court (almost always the petition is granted if all conditions are met).
The following conditions must be simultaneously met: the crime is punishable by up to 5 years in prison or any other type of punishment; the defendant does not have an unexpunged or unexpunged criminal record; the damage is compensated in full.
Compensation for damage can be in any form, the main thing is that the victim is satisfied.
The statement is written by both parties, indicating how exactly the damage will be compensated.
Based on the results of the consideration, a court ruling is issued, which can be appealed within 10 days through the appeal procedure.

No crime event

Theft is the secret theft of property, that is, the victim does not see how another person takes possession of his property. This feature of this crime creates the possibility of a situation where a citizen discovers the loss of a particular item, assumes its theft and writes a statement to the police, and after a while finds it in his possession.

If in reality there was no theft, and the item was simply lost or forgotten somewhere by the owner, then the crime itself did not occur.

The absence of a crime is grounds for termination of the criminal case. Therefore, if a citizen has already filed a report with the police and then discovered allegedly stolen property, he should inform the police about the discovery as soon as possible. Such a message, formally, cannot be considered a refusal of the statement, but rather the provision of additional important information about the event.

It is also necessary to remember the consequences for the applicant himself who finds himself in such a situation.

The Criminal Code of the Russian Federation contains the crime of “Knowingly false denunciation” - Article 306 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. A citizen who reports a theft that actually did not happen can be held liable under this article. There will be no liability if the applicant made a mistake in good faith, that is, he sincerely believed that the theft had occurred.

However, it must be remembered that a false denunciation is a crime of public accusation, that is, if an unfounded statement is identified, a check against the applicant must be carried out regardless of whether the citizen suspected of theft has a claim against him. Bona fide misrepresentation must be established. Of course, if the applicant himself reported the discovery of the missing item, this will significantly increase his chances of not being prosecuted for denunciation.

In addition, the claims of the accused himself against the applicant cannot be excluded. So a citizen can, firstly, try to bring the applicant to criminal liability for libel, and secondly, initiate civil recovery of damages incurred in connection with the commencement of criminal proceedings. For example, the defendant may have lost part of his earnings due to participating in investigative activities during working hours or suffered psychological suffering and have a claim for compensation for moral damages.