Any action that a person performs, regardless of his personality, bears the imprint of his character. It can manifest itself very brightly or be barely noticeable, but it is everywhere. This is especially noticeable when a criminal offense is committed. That is why at the moment, the criminal law and criminological characteristics of the crime have become so often used. Due to the constant study of criminals, it has become possible to say for sure that depending on the personality and nature of the criminal, the manifestations of the same crime can vary depending on the psychological picture and the social and moral neglect of people. This article will talk about how modern science uses a common criminal law profile.
Modern tendencies
Due to the enormous amount of media currently existing, one cannot surprise anyone with the fact that in Russia, as well as throughout the world, the criminal situation is getting more and more tense every year. The criminal environment and its natives are becoming not only more numerous, but also more organized. A period has long passed when crimes were committed mainly singly or as part of small gangs. The previously disparate formations are now united as never before. They are much better equipped technically, and intellectually too. Organized crime is now responsible for a rather significant part of crimes committed annually.
All this gradually led to the fact that the crimes they commit become increasingly dangerous and aggressive. That is why it is so important to study and improve the criminal law characteristics of crimes.
The concept
Before any crimes begin to be investigated on the basis of their forensic characteristics, the criminal law characteristics should be analyzed first. In fact, there is a huge variety of them. Recently, however, each such characteristic has been increasingly singled out as a separate discipline.
It should be understood that a single concept of criminal law characterization does not exist, since there would be too many disparate elements. However, it allows you to correctly formulate the desired subject, proving according to certain characteristics of the element of crime. When used correctly, the criminal law characterization of crimes not only defines them in such groups, but also directly determines the direction and order of actions of law enforcement agencies that are required to disclose or prevent violations.
Practical value
It is quite difficult to understand the meaning and purpose of this term at a theoretical level, so it’s better to see how lawyers apply it in practice. Further, they will be considered and analyzed from the point of view of the criminal law characteristics of the article of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. That is why, based on the above examples, it will be possible to understand how this science works.
Murder
First of all, consider the criminal law characterization of the murder. In fact, under the Constitution of the Russian Federation, a person and his personality are recognized as the highest value that exists in the state, therefore crimes against health are the first in the Special Part of the Code. And no crime is worse than taking another person’s life. In order to directly go on to understanding this crime, one should take into account its essential features, the identification of which is dealt with by the criminal law characteristic.
Signs of murder
The first thing to understand is that in order for the crime to be recognized as murder, he needs to have several signs:
1. The death of a person must necessarily be violent, that is, the compulsory influence of another person led to it. That is why accidents and suicides cannot be recognized as murders, despite the fact that there is only one end - death.
2. The second sign is always the wrongfulness of the act. Murder is always prosecuted because it is provided for in the criminal law of the country. This is what distinguishes directly the murder and lawful deprivation of life in self-defense. Those responsible for the execution of the death sentence cannot also be recognized as murderers.
3. According to the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, murder is understood as a guilty act, which is expressed as an encroachment on another person’s life and direct death. This is the main difference from accidental death, when a person simply could not assume that his actions would lead to the death of another person.
4. The fourth sign is the deprivation of life of another person.
It is based on all the above signs that one can directly form the concept of such a crime as murder.
Objectivity
In addition to the above signs, the criminal law characteristic of Art. 105 is also expressed in the allocation of all subjective and objective aspects.
1. The object of this crime is understood to mean the life of another person who was taken away as a result of a committed act. It is impossible to make amends for this, since it is impossible to resurrect a dead person.
2. The objective side of the murder is that the death was caused unlawfully due to the fact that the perpetrator committed a socially dangerous act or simply did nothing. Moreover, the onset of consequences and the causal relationship between them should be mandatory in such a composition.
Subjectivity
In addition to the object and the objective side, any crime has a subjective side, coupled with the subject.
3. The subjective side is the fact that the person was directly guilty of the crime and intentionally wanted to inflict it. The criminal must initially understand that one of the consequences will be the death of another person and desire it.
4. The subject refers to a person who has reached the age of 14 and is fully competent and can be responsible for his actions.
It is in all of the above elements that the practical use of the criminal law characteristic lies. It allows you to correctly establish whether the crime is a murder and correctly punish a person in accordance with the law.
Theft
Another important crime that can be committed in Russia is theft. The criminal law characteristic of theft has its own particular nuances that should be taken into account. Ownership in the country is protected by law. Therefore, it is criminal to seize items from the proper owner by theft. This is prescribed in article 158 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. Now let's try to draw up a criminal law characterization of this article.
Theft
For proper characterization, the first thing to do is determine the immediate object of theft. At the moment, this concept means social relations that are directly related to the right of ownership. Moreover, it does not matter what the form of this property is. Material values that can be stolen by a thief are usually considered only an additional, and not the main object.
The objective side in the criminal law characterization of this article means the existence of a mandatory consequence in the form of financial or property damage caused to the victim, which constitutes a danger to society. A complete theft can only be considered after the offender has the opportunity to dispose of items obtained by theft, and not immediately after seizure. So, according to the contents of the article, the seizure of a thing must be secret, gratuitous and non-violent, and besides, have the wrongfulness trait due to damage to the owner.
The subject and subjective side of the crime
Theft must be committed with direct intent by a subject who has reached the age of fourteen years, and is fully capable. He should perfectly understand that his actions were initially unlawful and carry public danger, he must know that his actions will harm the owner of the stolen item. But despite this, he still violated the existing law.
Rape
Another type of crime considered will be rape. The criminal law characterization of crimes against sexual integrity directly affects the harm that is directed against the person. At the moment, rape, according to existing legislation, is considered one of the most serious crimes that can be committed against a person.
The law clearly defines what normal sexual intercourse should be between two persons, a man and a woman. The first thing is that they must be completely voluntary on both sides and committed between partners who have reached puberty. That is why sex with minors is considered a crime.
Objective side and object
Based on the data provided in article 131 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, it can be understood that the object of rape is directly the sexual freedom of a woman, that is, the opportunity given to her to choose a sexual partner of her own accord. Sexual integrity as an object is allocated only when a woman is recognized partially or completely incompetent, or is even a minor. However, as part of this crime, one more object that can be considered optional can be singled out - this is directly the woman’s health, since during resistance she can be physically or mentally harmed.
The objective side of the crime is quite complex, because it consists mainly of 2 parts at once: directly sexual intercourse and the use of physical harm or threats against a woman, as well as using her in a state where she cannot resist. You should also understand the fact that sexual intercourse must be committed against the will of the victim, despite the previous relationship between the offender and the victim. It used to be widely believed that, if the persons were married, then even sexual intercourse committed against the will of the wife would not be considered rape. Now this opinion is no longer applied.
The subjective side of rape
In itself, the composition of sex crimes is considered formal, therefore responsibility is imposed on the offender immediately after the commission of the act, regardless of the final result. The subject here is understood to mean any natural person who at the time the crime was committed was sane and turned 14 years old, that is, he had reached the age of criminal responsibility.
On the subjective side, rape is always committed with direct intent. However, at the stage of preparation, a person can commit a voluntary refusal of a crime and then they cannot be judged by criminal law, even if initially his motive was the desire to commit it. Quite often, the motives for such crimes are purely sexual, that is, the guilty person wants to satisfy his passion, but in practice there are cases of rape from revenge or even through dummies.
Conclusion
As you can see, the criminal law characterization of crimes is extremely important so that the guilty person can be punished for the crime. Within its framework, the object and subject, as well as the objective and subjective side of the act, are definitely distinguished, which allows us to fully use the existing legislation and accurately understand all aspects of the matter. Depending on the type of crime, a criminal law characteristic can be very specific and quite difficult to understand. Often, there is no clear and transparent answer in it, however, despite this, it has a final impact to determine the range of forensic problems.