What is an amnesty, who makes a decision about it? How is it implemented in practice and what is its significance?
What is an amnesty?
We give a definition to the concept. What is an amnesty? This is the name of the procedure in relation to persons who have been convicted, in respect of whom an investigation is being conducted, and in relation to those who are serving a sentence. It can be applied to those who still have a criminal record. Upon acceptance of the amnesty, the criminal record is annulled.
Unlike a president’s pardon directed at a specific person, an act of parliament applies to an unlimited number of people. Who has the right to it, it becomes known after the implementation of the law.
Legislation
The possibility of applying amnesty is established by the Constitution; several provisions are contained in Art. 84 of the Criminal Code. She points out as the initiator the State Duma - the lower house of the Russian parliament. What amnesty is, the legislation does not say, but only explains the consequences of its application. However, this is enough to understand the essence of the phenomenon.
The application of amnesty, as a rule, is tied to anniversary dates, in connection with which the state decides to show mercy to its citizens. An example is the anniversary of Victory in the war of 1941-1945.
Document Content
The amnesty act is executed as a resolution, it lists the grounds for its application, the persons who fall under it, the limits of its application. The document indicates which articles of the Criminal Code deprive the right to mitigation or release.
The decision adopted in this case is a unique document and is based on the norms of the Constitution and other laws, however, first of all, the document always refers to the principle of humanism.
What is a criminal amnesty in practice? The article provides a list of articles of the Criminal Code, those involved or convicted under which have the right to commutation of sentence or full release from it.
The document stipulates its validity; in practice, usually 6 months are allocated for its implementation. If for some reason a decision has not been made for all persons who fall under the amnesty, it continues to be valid.
The establishment of a specific period of time, rather, is associated with the desire to expedite the work of the investigating authorities, prosecutors and justice. For their employees, going beyond the legal limits has serious consequences.
What measures are applied
What is an amnesty under the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation for a specific person:
- the criminal case is terminated at the stage of pre-trial investigation or trial in court;
- the person is released from the sentence already imposed by a court sentence;
- the punishment is mitigated.
The last paragraph means a reduction in the term of imprisonment or the term of another punishment, or the application of a different type of punishment. For example, deprivation of liberty is replaced by another punishment.
If the convicted or the person under investigation is subject to several acts of amnesty, the one that is most favorable to the person is applied.
Who executes the amnesty decision
The decision on amnesty is carried out by the investigating authorities or the courts. The decision of the investigator must be approved by the prosecutor.
If a citizen is serving a sentence, the decision to apply mitigation or release from punishment is made by the court. The decision is made by the court at the place of serving the sentence.
Thus, the act of amnesty is not unconditional, its application is selective.
If the person concerned or his counsel does not agree with the refusal to use it, they have the right to appeal the decision of the investigator or judge, according to the Code of Criminal Procedure.
In the first option, you can file a complaint with the prosecutor's office, up to the General Prosecutor's Office. In the second option, the refusal is appealed to a higher court if the first instance issued a negative decision
According to the clarifications of the RF Armed Forces, the FSIN has the right to amnesty a prisoner directly. In this case, the materials can be submitted to the court so that it makes a decision.
The meaning of amnesty
It should be noted that amnesty as a basis for mitigation or release is not a rehabilitating factor. The state continues to recognize that prosecution or conviction were lawful or deserved. Forgiveness in this regard cannot be called complete.
What benefits does the state receive? Citizens who have committed minor crimes or have done it for the first time have a certain preference. Almost all of them either remain at large, or their term of imprisonment is minimized.
Someone might be wondering if it would be worth the risk of being in jail once again, someone who, having committed an act not so dangerous from the point of view of the state, will be under the influence of hardcore violators for a shorter time. It is known that imprisonment has a negative impact and is considered among the employees of law enforcement agencies a “criminal institution”.
In addition, the regular application of such acts testifies to the recognition by the state of redundancy or excessiveness of criminal prosecution measures and their desire to mitigate the problem.