Concept, essence and purpose of criminal proceedings (criminal proceedings)

The concept of criminal proceedings (criminal proceedings)

The term “criminal trial” comes from the old Russian word “criminal”, that is, a criminal act for which one is deprived of one’s head, and the Latin words “procedere” - movement forward and “processus” - a successive change of states. This combination of words takes on the meaning of proceedings to prosecute and punish a crime.

The criminal process is a necessary and only possible form of implementation of the norms of criminal law. That is why criminal law has long been considered substantive law, and criminal procedure – formal criminal law.

If the norms of other branches of substantive law are implemented in the form of criminal proceedings only in cases where violations of these norms are criminal in nature, then the necessary and exclusive form of implementation of the norms of criminal law is always criminal proceedings.

The concepts of “criminal proceedings” and “criminal process” should be considered identical. According to paragraph 56 of Art. 5 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation, the content of the term “criminal proceedings” includes pre-trial and judicial proceedings in a criminal case. From an etymological point of view, legal proceedings mean proceedings carried out by the court, which in the historical aspect fully corresponded to the initially unified procedure for considering criminal and civil cases, in which a legal relationship developed between the court and the parties interested in the outcome of the case. Therefore, concepts such as criminal proceedings or criminal justice (Latin justitia - justice, justice) are widely used as synonyms for the criminal process.

In modern criminal procedural theory, a similar definition is preserved, which continues to emphasize the exclusive role of the court in criminal proceedings.

The definition of a domestic criminal process usually includes three elements:

1. activities of preliminary investigation bodies, prosecutors, courts and other subjects of criminal proceedings;
2. legal relations of these participants;
3. legal regulation of activities and legal relations arising on its basis.

The above allows us to define the criminal process.

Criminal proceedings are the activities carried out in accordance with the procedure established by law by the inquirer, the inquiry body, the investigator, the head of the investigative body, the prosecutor, the court and other participants in criminal proceedings during the initiation, investigation, judicial review and resolution of criminal cases, the execution of sentences, as well as those arising in connection with this activity is a legal relationship.

The activities of the inquirer, investigator, prosecutor, judge and court, based on the criminal procedural law, have a decisive and organizing significance in the investigation and judicial consideration of criminal cases.

State bodies and officials are responsible for the legality of the procedural actions they carry out and the decisions they make.

The priority of public interests, the initial element of which is the interests of private individuals, ultimately forms the “foundation”, the basis of the criminal process (publicity). Therefore, when speaking about the criminal process as the order of relations between official (public) bodies and other participants in the process, it should be borne in mind that we are talking about relations arising from the activities of government bodies and developing in connection with it. However, this does not deprive these relationships of a legal nature, since all actions of government bodies and officials must comply with the law, and the persons in respect of whom these actions are carried out are endowed by law with certain rights and responsibilities.

To understand the essence of the criminal process, it is necessary to correlate this concept with the concept of “justice”. The term “justice” (trial of a case by a “right court”) should be defined in a narrow and broad sense. In the first case, it is meant that the criminal process covers the activities of not only the court, but also the preliminary investigation authorities, the prosecutor and other participants in criminal proceedings. Thus, justice in criminal cases is an important part of criminal proceedings. In the second meaning, justice is the trial and resolution of not only criminal, but also civil and arbitration cases. The legal basis of justice is quite broad and includes the norms of all branches of legislation that should guide the court when considering and resolving specific cases - constitutional, civil, administrative and others.

The criminal process must be considered as a system of interconnected and interdependent elements, which will make it possible to better understand its legal nature and properties.

The first element of the concept of “criminal procedure” is the activity of the court, which is designed to ultimately establish the grounds for the implementation of criminal liability, and the activities of the parties, which have a different focus (element - criminal procedural functions) and ensuring the implementation of their rights and interests (element - criminal procedure). procedural guarantees).

Criminal proceedings act as a purposeful activity of its subjects. Therefore, the second element of this concept is the goal towards which criminal procedural activity strives and to achieve which certain, specific tasks are set by various subjects.

In criminal proceedings, the composition of the participants is heterogeneous, their activities are multi-vector. Officials and government bodies carrying out the investigation and consideration of a criminal case involve other persons in the orbit of criminal proceedings who protect their interests (accused, victim, civil plaintiff, civil defendant) or the interests they represent (defender, representatives of the victim, civil plaintiff, civil defendant ), or are sources of information about facts (witness, expert), perform auxiliary functions in criminal proceedings (interpreter, court secretary, specialist, etc.) Persons involved in participation in criminal proceedings, in turn, carry out activities (file petitions and challenges, participate in investigative actions, appear in court)

in the manner prescribed by law. Thus, the criminal procedural form (otherwise – procedural order, procedure) is the third element of the concept of “criminal process”.

The criminal process consists not simply of activity, but of the interaction of various subjects, which represents a set of numerous social relations. Regulated by the rules of law, they acquire the character of legal relations. Thus, the legal relationship between the subjects of the process is the fourth element of the concept of “criminal process”.

Let us take a closer look at these main categories used to characterize criminal proceedings.

The procedure for conducting judicial investigations in criminal cases

The judicial investigation begins with a statement by the state prosecutor of the charge brought against the defendant, and in criminal cases of private prosecution - with a statement by the private prosecutor; after which the presiding judge asks the defendant whether he understands the charge, whether he pleads guilty and whether he or his defense attorney wishes to express his attitude to the charge.

After this, the court proceeds to examine the evidence. The prosecution presents evidence first, then the defense evidence is examined. In court, the testimony of the defendant, victim, witness and expert, given by them during interrogation in court, as well as during the preliminary investigation (Articles 275-282 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation), is examined; forensic examination (Article 283 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation); material evidence (Article 284 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation); protocols of investigative actions and other documents are made public (Article 285 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation); an inspection of the area and premises is carried out (Article 287 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation), an investigative experiment (Article 288 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation), presentation for identification (Article 289 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation) and an examination (Article 290 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation). Upon completion of the examination of the evidence presented by the parties, the judge asks the parties whether they wish to supplement the judicial investigation and, if a motion is filed, discusses it and makes a decision. After resolution of the petitions, the judge declares the judicial investigation over.

Purpose and objectives of the criminal process

The position on determining the goals and objectives of the criminal process represents the choice of one or another scale of values ​​in the field of criminal proceedings. Consequently, these provisions form questions of a social and even philosophical nature.

The social purpose of the criminal justice system is to resolve conflicts between individuals and government authorities with the least negative consequences for society.

The current law enshrines the following wording: “Criminal proceedings have as their purpose:

1. protection of the rights and legitimate interests of individuals and organizations who have suffered from crimes;
2. protection of the individual from illegal and unfounded accusations, convictions, and restrictions on his rights and freedoms” (Part 1 of Article 6 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation).

The change in the legislator's position regarding the essence of criminal proceedings as a social institution is clearly visible when compared with the definition of its tasks previously contained in the law. With this definition of the goals of criminal proceedings, the legislator emphasizes not the punitive, but the human rights, humanistic essence of this type of law enforcement activity. The legislator elevated the considered equivalent goals of legal proceedings to the category of fundamental legal ideas, that is, the principles of modern Russian criminal procedure.

The positive side of the current legislative formulation of the social purpose of criminal proceedings is, firstly, that it deprives the normative basis of the thesis about the fight against crime as the goal of the functioning of criminal justice. Secondly, the term “defense” is opposed to the “punitive threats” of the criminal law (it is not for nothing that criminal law is usually viewed as a sword in the hands of the state, and the criminal process as a shield with which an individual is protected)3.

However, it should be noted that the legislator has not defined the tasks that need to be completed to achieve the goals. Meanwhile, the principle of constructing the basic institutions of the criminal process, the scope of the rights of its participants, the rules of evidence, etc. depend on the answer to this question.

Analysis of the provisions of Art. 6 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation allows us to conclude that the means of achieving the goals of criminal proceedings (tasks) include:

1. criminal prosecution of the perpetrators (quick and complete detection of crimes, exposing those responsible for committing crimes);
2. ensuring the correct application of criminal and criminal procedural law;
3. assigning a fair punishment to the guilty;
4. ensuring compensation for material damage and compensation for moral damage caused by the crime;
5. refusal to prosecute innocent people;
6. freeing innocent people from punishment;
7. ensuring compensation for damage caused by illegal actions of state bodies and officials conducting the process, that is, the rehabilitation of everyone who was unreasonably subjected to criminal prosecution;
8. ensuring security measures for participants in legal proceedings.

It must be said that the law not only names, but also regulates in detail each of these means, establishing the types of criminal prosecution and the obligation to carry it out (Chapter 3 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation); grounds for refusal to initiate a criminal case, termination of a criminal case and criminal prosecution (Chapter 4 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation); grounds for the emergence of the right to rehabilitation, types and procedure for compensation of harm to the rehabilitated person (Chapter 18 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation), etc.

Pre-trial stages

The pre-trial stages of the criminal process are the first steps in identifying the perpetrators and bringing them to justice. The outcome of the proceedings as a whole directly depends on what pre-trial investigation scheme will be used and how it will be carried out. The reason for checking information about the commission of a crime is a statement from citizens or a determination of the crime in fact. The purpose of the pre-trial investigation is to collect all kinds of evidence confirming the fact of the crime, to identify persons who may be involved in the commission of the crime, as well as to carry out other procedural actions.

Only after a certain base of information has been collected and the elements of the crime have been established, can a criminal case be initiated. It should be noted that only when criminal proceedings are initiated, it is possible to carry out investigative actions and move to other stages of legal proceedings.

The stage ends with a decision to initiate a criminal case or a refusal to initiate one. If there is no evidence of a crime, then the investigation is terminated.

The second stage - investigation, begins with an inquiry, investigative experiments and other procedural actions aimed at fully solving the crime. All materials collected at the first stage begin to be checked for veracity - interviews are conducted with people who could have witnessed the criminal act, as well as the victim and the suspect. The actions of the accused are assessed, the circumstances that contributed to the violation of the law are considered, and the amount of damage caused is determined.

The procedure for proving the guilt of a suspect is controlled by the prosecutor; Before sending the case to court, the prosecutor is obliged to check the case materials for errors and establish the fact that the inquiry was conducted correctly. When obtaining information, physical force or mental pressure should not be used; everything must be done in accordance with established legislation. All documentation must be drawn up according to clear templates. The slightest mistake or inaccuracy serves as a reason to return the case materials to the investigator for further investigation and correction.

The task of the prosecutor at this stage of the proceedings is also the correct application of the article of law that reflects the illegal action. The indictment must contain a certain amount of punishment; it must correspond to the committed action of the defendant and be within the limits of the article charged with him.

The final decision at this stage of proceedings is the termination of the case, drawing up an indictment and sending the case to trial or a decision to apply compulsory medical measures.

Contents of criminal proceedings: system of stages and proceedings

The study of the categories of content and form of criminal procedural activity has important cognitive significance. As philosophical categories, these concepts reflect the most general and essential aspects of reality and a wide scope of application. The content of criminal proceedings is a set of elements that form it in interaction. Form is a way of expressing content and is realized both through the appearance of the process and through its internal structure.

Criminal procedural activity is expressed in a system of successively replacing each other procedural actions, stages that form the stages of the criminal process. Criminal proceedings are carried out through a sequential transition from one stage to another; violation of this order is not permissible. A prerequisite for the transition of a case to the next stage is the solution of problems of the previous stage; each subsequent stage is based on the results of previous activities. This ensures the efficiency of criminal proceedings.

The system of stages of the criminal process is a guarantee of achieving the truth, a means of detecting and correcting procedural errors. At the same time, this system serves as a guarantee of the rights of the accused and other participants in the process, because allows them to appeal to the prosecutor or court decisions made at previous stages of the process.

The information collected in a criminal case is “filtered” through a system of stages: excess information is eliminated, and to obtain the missing information, the case is returned to the previous stage of the criminal process.

The stages of criminal proceedings are usually understood as relatively independent, interconnected parts of criminal proceedings, characterized by certain characteristics.

The independence of each stage of criminal proceedings is determined by the following features:

1. a certain position in the criminal process system;
2. immediate specific tasks arising from the general tasks of criminal proceedings;
3. circle of participants determined by law;
4. beginning and end, time boundaries (deadlines);
5. form of procedural actions and nature of procedural relations;
6. final procedural decision.

In criminal proceedings, the following stages are distinguished:

I. Regular:

1. criminal proceedings;
2. preliminary investigation;
3. preparation for a court hearing;
4. trial;
5. appellate proceedings;
6. execution of the sentence.

II. Exceptional (characterized by the presence at the time of production of an exceptional circumstance - a sentence that has entered into legal force):

1. proceedings in the cassation court;
2. proceedings before a supervisory authority;
3. resumption of cases due to new or newly discovered circumstances.

A criminal case does not necessarily go through all stages of the process. For example, in criminal proceedings there may be no stage of preliminary investigation (in cases of private prosecution), stage of proceedings in the appellate instance (if the sentence that has not entered into legal force has not been appealed), etc.

Initiation of a criminal case is the initial and mandatory stage of the criminal process, in which the inquiry officer, the inquiry body, the investigator and the head of the investigative body decide whether there are sufficient grounds to begin criminal proceedings. The essence of this stage is the quick and correct response of the competent authorities to each case of detection of signs of a crime.

The content of the stage of initiating a criminal case includes procedural activities for receiving, registering, verifying and resolving reports of a crime.

The stage of initiating a criminal case ends with a decision to initiate a criminal case or to refuse it (Part 1 of Article 145 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation).

The act of initiating a criminal case serves as the starting point for the preliminary investigation, states that signs of a crime have been discovered and the relevant bodies and officials can begin procedural actions aimed at solving and investigating the criminal case.

The content of the preliminary investigation stage is the activity of the investigator and interrogator to establish the event of a crime, expose the person or persons guilty of committing the crime, and prepare the materials of the criminal case for trial.

In accordance with Art. 150 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation, the forms of preliminary investigation are preliminary investigation and inquiry.

The preliminary investigation, regulated by Chapter 22 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation, is the main form of preliminary investigation, which is mandatory in all criminal cases, with the exception of criminal cases of crimes specified in Part 3 of Art. 150 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation, since an inquiry is carried out on them.

The preliminary investigation in a criminal case is carried out individually, and if it is complex or large in volume, it can be entrusted to an investigative group, in whose work officials of the bodies carrying out operational investigative activities are also involved (Article 163 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation).

The preliminary investigation ends with: the drawing up of an indictment; termination of the criminal case; sending a criminal case to court for the application of compulsory medical measures (Articles 158, 439 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation). The inquiry ends with the drawing up of an indictment or the termination of the criminal case (Chapter 32 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation).

Proceedings in the court of first instance begin with the stage of preparation of the court session, the task of which is to establish the presence or absence of grounds for considering the criminal case at the court session.

If there are such grounds, the judge carries out preparatory actions for the court hearing or organizes and conducts a preliminary hearing.

The most important stage of the criminal process is the trial, which is the consideration of a criminal case on its merits in a trial court. As a result of direct examination of the evidence, the defendant may be found guilty or innocent of a crime, subjected to criminal punishment or released from it.

The trial is carried out in a form strictly established by law; here all the most important principles of the criminal process are most fully realized.

Court proceedings most often end with a verdict of guilty or acquittal, but other court decisions may also be made, for example, to terminate a criminal case.

Proceedings in the court of the second (appeal) instance provide for the appellate procedure for considering a criminal case. During proceedings in the appellate instance, a verdict or other decision of the court (judge) that has not entered into legal force is appealed by the parties to the appellate court (superior court), which reconsiders the criminal case with a new decision on the merits. The appellate court has the right to cancel or change the sentence, pronounce a new sentence, or return the case for retrial to the court of first instance.

Execution of a sentence is the final stage of the criminal process and includes a number of procedural actions and decisions of the judge that ensure the implementation of the sentence that has entered into legal force. The contents of this stage include:

1. enforcement of the sentence by the court;
2. direct execution by the court of the sentence in whole or in part;
3. resolving issues related to the execution of the sentence.

A court decision is enforced through the execution of certain actions by the court or other bodies, and issues arising during the execution of the sentence are resolved by the judge alone in a court hearing.

The content of the proceedings in the cassation instance is that the cassation court, upon the complaint of a party or the presentation of a prosecutor in a collegial composition, checks the court decisions of the first and appellate instances that have entered into legal force, from the point of view of their legality and validity and, depending on the results of the check, leaves a judicial decision the decision is in force, cancels it or makes the necessary changes to it. The cassation procedure for reviewing a criminal case, in contrast to appellate proceedings, is intended only to correct legal errors associated with the incorrect application of the substantive (criminal) law or a significant violation of the criminal procedural law. The cassation instance carries out verification primarily on the written materials of the criminal case and does not consider the criminal case on its merits through the examination of evidence. The cassation court may decide to cancel or change the sentence or uphold it in force.

The stage of proceedings in the supervisory authority consists of checking the decisions of lower courts that have entered into legal force by the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation. The review procedure and the nature of the decisions made in the supervisory court are similar to the rules for reviewing a case in cassation.

Resumption of cases due to new or newly discovered circumstances is a review of court decisions that have entered into legal force due to the discovery of circumstances that existed at the time the verdict or other court decision entered into legal force, but were not known to the court, or circumstances that were not known to the court at the time of entry into force. the moment of the court decision.

The right to initiate proceedings due to new or newly discovered circumstances belongs to the prosecutor. To establish newly discovered circumstances, the prosecutor, by his resolution, initiates proceedings, conducts an appropriate check, requests a copy of the verdict and a court certificate about its entry into legal force. Upon completion of the inspection or investigation and if there are grounds for resuming the criminal proceedings, the prosecutor sends the criminal case with his conclusion and other materials to the court for a new trial; if there are no grounds, he terminates the proceedings initiated by him.

To establish new circumstances, the prosecutor issues a resolution to initiate proceedings due to new circumstances and forwards the relevant materials to the head of the investigative body for investigation.

The renewal of cases in connection with a complaint from a participant in the proceedings and the presence of a decision of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation or the European Court of Human Rights has significant features.

Individual proceedings may extend to one or more stages of the criminal process. As a rule, a prerequisite for this is the presence of special tasks, the nature of the criminal case, and the characteristics of the subjects of the criminal process.

Each proceeding has a differentiated criminal procedural form, which will be discussed below.

Peculiarities of proceedings in court with the participation of jurors

Proceedings in court with the participation of jurors are conducted in accordance with the general procedure, taking into account the features provided for in Chapter 42 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation.

After the court session is scheduled, the court secretary or assistant judge selects candidates for jurors by random sampling from the general and reserve lists available in the court. Candidates included in the preliminary list for jurors are given notices indicating the date and time of arrival in court no later than 7 days before the start of the trial. Candidate jurors who have appeared in court have the right to recuse themselves from participation in the consideration of a criminal case, and may also be recused by the parties to the case. The first 14 from the list of unrequested candidates are included in the protocol of the court session, of which the first 12 form a panel of jurors in a criminal case, and the last two participate in the consideration of the case as reserve jurors. Upon completion of the formation of the jury, the jurors take their assigned place on the jury bench, which is separated from those present in the courtroom and is located, as a rule, opposite the dock.

The jurors elect a foreman from among themselves and are sworn in by the presiding judge. Before the jurors are sworn in, the parties have the right to declare that, due to the nature of the criminal case under consideration, the jury as a whole may be unable to render an objective verdict. If the application is found to be justified, the presiding judge dissolves the jury and re-conducts the procedure for its formation.

During the trial of a criminal case, jurors resolve only those issues that are provided for in paragraphs 1, 2 and 4 of Part 1 of Art. 299 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation and are formulated in the question paper. The remaining issues of the trial are resolved without the participation of jurors by the presiding judge alone. After interrogation by the parties of the defendant, victim, witnesses, and expert, jurors have the right to ask them questions, which are stated in writing and submitted to the presiding officer through the foreman. These questions may be dismissed by the presiding officer as irrelevant to the charge. It is prohibited to examine the facts of a previous criminal record, recognition of the defendant as a chronic alcoholic or drug addict, as well as other data that could cause the jury to be prejudiced against the defendant.

Taking into account the results of the judicial investigation and the debates of the parties, the judge formulates in writing the questions to be resolved by the jury, reads them out and passes them on to the parties, who have the right to express their comments and make proposals for raising new questions. Taking into account the comments and suggestions of the parties, the judge finally formulates the issues to be resolved by the jury and puts them on the question sheet, which he signs.

The content of questions for jurors is regulated by Art. 339 Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation. For each of the acts of which the defendant is accused, three main questions are asked: 1) whether it has been proven that the act took place; 2) whether it has been proven that the defendant committed this act; 3) whether the defendant is guilty of committing this act. The question paper can also pose one main question about the guilt of the defendant. After the main question about the guilt of the defendant, private questions may be raised about such circumstances that affect the degree of guilt or change its nature, entailing the release of the defendant from responsibility. If the defendant is found guilty, the question is whether he deserves leniency. Questions that require jurors to legally qualify the status of the defendant (about his criminal record), as well as other questions that require actual legal assessment when the jurors make their verdict, cannot be raised.

Before the jury is removed to the deliberation room to render a verdict, the presiding officer addresses the jurors with parting words. At the same time, he is prohibited from expressing his opinion in any form on the issues put before the jury.

In the deliberation room, the meeting of the jurors is led by a foreman, who puts questions for discussion in the sequence established by the question sheet, votes on the answers to them and counts the votes. Voting is open. None of the jurors has the right to abstain from voting. When discussing the issues raised, jurors must strive to make unanimous decisions, however, if unanimity cannot be achieved within 3 hours of discussion, then the decision is made by voting. A guilty verdict is considered accepted if a majority of the jurors vote in the affirmative to each of the three questions. A not guilty verdict is considered accepted if at least six jurors vote for a negative answer to any of the main questions posed in the question sheet. The answers to the questions posed to the jurors are entered by the foreman of the jurors into the question sheet, which he signs.

If during the deliberation the jurors come to the conclusion that it is necessary to receive additional clarifications from the presiding officer on the issues raised, then they return to the courtroom and address the presiding officer with a corresponding request through the foreman. The presiding officer, in the presence of the parties, gives the necessary explanations, or introduces appropriate clarifications into the questions posed, or supplements the question sheet with new questions. At the request of the jurors and taking into account the opinions of the parties, the presiding officer may decide on the resumption of the judicial investigation.

After signing the question sheet with the answers to the questions posed, the jurors return to the courtroom, where the foreman of the jury announces the verdict, which is then transferred to the presiding officer for inclusion in the materials of the criminal case.

The consequences of the verdict are discussed without the participation of the jury. When a panel of jurors renders a verdict that the defendant is innocent, the presiding judge declares him acquitted. In this case, the defendant, who is in custody, is immediately released from custody in the courtroom. In the event of a guilty verdict, a study is carried out of the circumstances related to the qualification of the defendant's offense, the imposition of punishment on him, the resolution of a civil claim and other issues resolved by the court when rendering a guilty verdict. The acquittal verdict of the jury is mandatory for the presiding judge and entails his decision of an acquittal. A guilty verdict is also mandatory for the presiding judge, with the exception of cases provided for in parts 4 and 5 of Art. 348 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation (recognition by the presiding officer of the fact that the defendant’s act does not contain signs of a crime, as well as the issuance of a guilty verdict against an innocent person and if the event of the crime has not been established or the defendant’s participation in the commission of the crime has not been proven). An indication in the verdict of the jury that the defendant, found guilty, deserves leniency is mandatory for the presiding officer and entails the imposition of punishment using the provisions of Art. 65 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (no more than 2/3 of the maximum period established by the relevant article of the Special Part of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). If the jury did not find the defendant deserving of leniency, then the presiding judge, taking into account the circumstances mitigating and aggravating the punishment, and the identity of the perpetrator, has the right to assign punishment to the defendant using the provisions of Art. 64 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (below the lower limit provided for by the corresponding article of the Special Part of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation).

Criminal procedural form: concept, its unity and differentiation

Criminal procedural activity is characterized not only by stages, but also by a clearly established form of criminal proceedings (in the law of Ancient Rome there is a well-known expression: “the procedural form is the essential form”).

The criminal procedural form is a normatively established system of rules and procedures that determines the grounds, conditions, terms, sequence and procedure for performing procedural actions and making procedural decisions.

In this case, it is possible to distinguish the criminal procedural form of a certain investigative or procedural action or a separate stage of the criminal process or the entire criminal process as a whole.

The procedural form has the following main features:

1. precise establishment in law of the procedure for activity and decision-making by state bodies;
2. providing interested parties with the right to directly participate in procedural activities in order to protect their rights and legitimate interests;
3. the presence of special guarantees of respect for the rights and legitimate interests of the persons involved in the case;
4. ensuring that a decision is made in accordance with the law on the basis of facts established in a manner specified by law.

Features of the criminal procedural form are:

1. the predominance of imperative principles over dispositive ones when participants in the process choose a method of behavior;
2. ensuring proper behavior of participants in the process by measures of state coercion;
3. the dependence of the nature of coercion on the social danger of the crime committed;
4. the presence of the institution of preliminary investigation carried out in all criminal cases, with the exception of cases of private prosecution;
5. the presence of a special institution for the protection of the rights and legitimate interests of the accused;
6. the presence of a verdict as an act of justice establishing criminal liability and imposing punishment on the perpetrator.

The significance of the criminal procedural form is manifested in the fact that it:

• establishes a detailed, stable, strictly mandatory regime for criminal proceedings.
• ensures compliance with the rights and interests of participants in criminal proceedings.
• creates conditions for achieving the truth and the most effective legal proceedings in a criminal case.

Any violation of the procedural form, procedural simplification leads to a violation of the rights of participants in the process, the invalidity of the actions taken, and the cancellation of decisions made.

The procedural form is the same for all criminal cases, but has its own characteristics in relation to their individual categories. The criteria for differentiation of the criminal procedural form can be the nature of the crime committed, depending on which there is a need to complicate or, conversely, simplify the procedure (inquiry and preliminary investigation, ordinary and special procedures for trial) or the characteristics of the subject of the crime (age, mental health, presence of diplomatic, deputy, official and other immunities). Features may be due to special tasks or guarantees for participants in criminal proceedings (rehabilitation, proceedings before a magistrate, proceedings in a case in the presence of a pre-trial cooperation agreement).

Trial stage

The concept of the preparatory process of considering a case in court is essentially the same study of evidence, only based on the fact of collected and systematized materials. The content of the materials is examined by the judge who will consider the case at the hearing.

The preparatory stage is necessary in order to fully ensure the preservation of the rights and freedoms of the accused and the victim. The judge determines whether the prosecutor brought the charges correctly and legally. Is there enough evidence to bring to justice, and can the accused even answer before the law, due to his age and mental health?

If the prosecutor has fully fulfilled his duties and complied with the law in preparing the case, then the judge accepts it for consideration, a corresponding resolution is issued and a trial date is set.

The trial in the court of first instance takes place in compliance with all principles of justice. The case materials are examined on their merits, the parties are questioned, arguments take place, and the judge decides whether a particular person is guilty of a crime or not. Mitigating and aggravating circumstances in the case, the behavior of the defendant during the investigation, as well as the rules of the law that were violated by the accused must be taken into account.

It is very important to note that pleading guilty does not exempt a person from trial; in fact, it does not matter at all. Only his cooperation with the investigation plays a role

It is the judge's job to get to the bottom of whether he is guilty or not. If the parties notice that the judge is making subjective decisions, they can demand his removal at this stage. Sometimes a motion for recusal is nothing more than a ploy to delay the sentencing and, while the case is suspended, to collect more evidence or bribe new witnesses. The result of the trial is a court decision or decree that comes into force within 10 days.

The execution of the sentence may be delayed if the parties are not satisfied with the outcome of the trial. Everyone has the right to appeal the decision in a court of second instance. Not only the parties involved in the process, but also the prosecutor can submit an application.

The difference between an appellate court and a district court is that it does not find the accused in the case; it examines the correctness of the decision made by the court of first instance. The appellate court can leave the sentence unchanged, can overturn it, change it, or assign a new one, it all depends on the specific situation. The decision of the court of second instance is binding. It can only be appealed in the Supreme or International Court, although not all cases are considered by these authorities.

To summarize, we can say that the importance of the stages of the criminal process is very great, not only in legal proceedings, but throughout criminal law. The existence of stages of production at the legislative level facilitates the implementation of any criminal process, and helps to control the level of legality in the activities of law enforcement agencies.

Criminal procedural legal relations: concept, elements and features

Criminal procedural legal relations are social relations regulated by the norms of criminal procedural law between subjects of criminal proceedings, manifested in their mutual rights and obligations.

The general object of criminal procedural relations is the alleged criminal legal relationship between the state represented by its bodies and the criminal (or guilty), subject to resolution in the field of criminal proceedings. A special object of criminal procedural relations is the expected result of the behavior of participants in a particular criminal procedural relationship.

Subjects of criminal procedural relations are participants in legal relations in the field of criminal proceedings, the obligatory and determining party among whom are representatives of government authorities.

The content of criminal procedural relations are the actions of participants in criminal proceedings, and the form of criminal procedural relations are the rights (powers) and obligations of participants in criminal proceedings.

Features of criminal procedural legal relations are as follows:

1. One of the subjects of legal relations is always a state body or official, in connection with which they can be designated as “power relations”. In criminal proceedings, there are two types of legal relations depending on the composition of its participants: a) between government bodies and officials (the head of the investigative body - investigator, prosecutor - court, investigator - prosecutor) and b) between government entities and citizens participating in the criminal process (investigator – accused).

2. Criminal procedural legal relations are always bilateral in nature, since the rights and obligations of one subject correspond to the rights and obligations of another subject. Thus, the right of the victim to file an appeal corresponds to the obligation of a higher court to consider it.

3. A characteristic feature of criminal procedural relations is their connection with criminal legal relations, since all criminal procedural activities are aimed at identifying the nature of criminal legal relations.

There are a number of significant differences between criminal material and procedural relations. Criminal legal relations arise directly between the state and the person who committed the crime. It is not the state itself that participates in criminal procedural relations, but its competent bodies that carry out law enforcement activities. The legal fact that entails the emergence of criminal legal relations is the socially dangerous act itself (action or inaction). A legal fact that entails the emergence of criminal procedural relations is the receipt of information about a crime committed, being committed or being prepared.

In most cases, and the quality of legal facts entailing the emergence, change or termination of criminal procedural relations are the actions and decisions of the competent state bodies related to the implementation of the tasks assigned to them6. However, along with this, the actions of other participants in the process provided for by law, as well as certain types of events (for example, the death of the accused, entailing the need to terminate the case) and conditions (for example, a serious illness of the accused, entailing the need to suspend the proceedings in the case), have the significance of legal facts.

Appeal review

If the parties are not satisfied with the result of considering the materials of the criminal episode or the size and nature of the imposed punishment, they have the right to appeal the verdict.

A distinctive feature of the stage of appeal proceedings is that a higher authority does not conduct a judicial investigation when a complaint is received from a convicted person (representation of a prosecutor). At this stage, the correctness of the decision of the lower court is verified based on the case materials alone.

An important nuance of the appeal stage indicates that the court of second instance should not go beyond the requirements set out in the petition. That is, a higher judge does not have the authority to request additional materials and conduct other investigative actions.

The result of consideration of the appeal (submission) may take the following forms:

• the judicial act remains unchanged;
• the sentence is overturned;
• the size or nature of the imposed punishment changes.

The appeal decision comes into force immediately after it is issued.

Subjects of criminal proceedings. Criminal procedural functions: concept and types

The subjects of criminal procedural relations are those persons and bodies whom the law vests with procedural rights or responsibilities.

By establishing these rights and obligations, the law thereby determines the nature of their activities. The range of subjects of criminal procedural relations, i.e. persons and bodies endowed with certain rights and responsibilities in the process, is enshrined in law. This determines the circle of persons who have procedural legal capacity as the ability of participants in the process to have certain procedural rights and obligations established by the norms of procedural law.

For government bodies and public organizations, as well as for officials participating in the process, the ability to have rights and responsibilities merges with the ability to exercise these rights and responsibilities through one’s actions, uniting into a single concept of legal personality.

For individuals, legal personality, i.e. the ability to be the subject of procedural relations does not exclude the need to determine their legal capacity and capacity. In case of defects in the legal capacity of individuals, it is compensated by the activities of their legal representatives.

Legal personality is a prerequisite for the legal status of a participant in the process, characterized by a combination of certain rights and obligations.

The classification of subjects of criminal procedural relations can be made according to various criteria, one of which is the nature of the interest they protect. Depending on this criterion, participants are divided into the following groups:

1. government bodies and officials conducting the process (court, prosecutor, investigator, inquiry officer, etc.);
2. persons who have a personal interest in a criminal case (accused, victim, civil plaintiff, civil defendant);
3. participants representing the interests of other subjects of the process (defender, representative, legal representative);
4. persons promoting justice (witness, expert, specialist, translator, witnesses, etc.).

The classification of participants in the process will be somewhat different depending on the procedural function they perform. In this case, the procedural function is understood as the role and purpose of a given participant in the process, expressed in the direction of his activities. Based on this criterion, the law allows us to distinguish four groups of participants in the process:

1. participants performing the function of resolving a criminal case on its merits. This function is performed exclusively by the judge (court);
2. participants in the process on the part of the prosecution, who are entrusted with the function of prosecution (criminal prosecution). The law includes in this group the prosecutor, as well as the head of the investigative body, the investigator, the inquiry body, the inquirer, the private prosecutor, the victim, his legal representative and representative, the civil plaintiff and his representative;
3. participants in the process on the part of the defense, performing the function of defending against the prosecution. This group includes the suspect, the accused, his legal representative, defense attorney, civil defendant, his legal representative and representative;
4. participants who perform auxiliary or technical functions: witnesses, experts, specialists, translators, witnesses, etc.

The function of criminal prosecution (accusation) is a procedural activity carried out in order to expose a suspect accused of committing a crime (clause 55 of Article 5 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation).

Depending on the interest pursued by the accuser and the legal status of the subject of the accusatory function, there are three types of accusations - private, public and private-public.

The defense function is a procedural activity carried out to protect the accused and suspect from accusations.

The function of resolving a case (justice) is a procedural activity consisting in judicial consideration of a case and deciding the issue of guilt and sentencing, or vice versa.

Supervisory proceedings

The end of the competition between the parties comes at the moment when the verdict, whatever it may be (acquittal or conviction), comes into legal force. As a result, the prosecutor cannot return again to the issue of the criminal liability of the person in respect of whom the court decision was made. But the accused, on the contrary, has the right to raise the issue of reviewing the sentence in his favor. This process in domestic criminal law is called “judicial supervision”. In essence, it is something like an audit of a court decision for errors.

First stage

Pre-trial proceedings always begin with the independent stage of initiating criminal proceedings (cases). Its immediate tasks are to establish signs of a crime or circumstances that exclude its commission. Upon completion, one of two decisions is made (a decision is made): or a refusal to take this action. The intermediate step is the transfer of the application or appeal under jurisdiction.

The essence of the stage under consideration is that at it a decision is made on the possibility of starting procedural activities (compulsory), the results of which will subsequently serve as material for proceedings in court. In other words, this is nothing more than the beginning of his preliminary investigation.

In criminal procedural law, two models of this stage are distinguished:

1. The investigative model is used in cases where the decision to initiate procedural activity is made by the same body that must carry out criminal prosecution. Such powers are vested only in the interrogating officer, the investigator, the chiefs and heads of the relevant departments.
2. The adversarial model implies that the official decision to initiate criminal proceedings is made by the court on the basis of a petition received from the prosecution.

This stage is important: determining the specific moment of the beginning of the investigation (preliminary), ensuring the legal rights of interested parties, creating, through the act of initiating a case, conditions for carrying out compulsory procedural actions. It also serves as something like a “filter” for incoming information that obviously does not contain information about criminal acts.