Intentional Homicide Sentencing Benchmarking Studies

The two hundred and thirty-second article in The Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China regulated that a person who intentionally commits homicide shall be sentenced to death, life imprisonment or fixed-term imprisonment of not less than ten years; and if the circumstance is relatively minor, to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than three years and not more than ten years. This is the basic indictment and punishment rules against intentional homicide in current Criminal Law in our country. Intentional homicide has been the hardest-hit area in punishment since ancient times. Today it is also the hardest-hit area in death penalty. With the voice of abolishing the death penalty in the International Criminal Law, how to sentence properly and accurately in such a large range of legal punishment is an important task for judicial practice field. This is not only the requirement of justice, but also the demand of the principle that the crime and measurement of penalty should be balanced. The sentencing benchmark study of intentional homicide pointed out the right direction to the sentencing equilibrium. This article ,which started from sentencing benchmark, trying to find out the key to intentional homicide sentencing equilibrium from the angle of the abolition, concept, establish method of sentencing benchmark and so on. Combined with the sentencing equilibrium research of Britain, the United States, Germany, Japan and other countries, whose laws are relatively complete, the article wanted to establish our own intentional homicide sentencing benchmarks. In our intentional homicide sentencing benchmark exploration, the author, who sums up the problems exposed in current legislation in our country and learn the outstanding achievement in both theory and practice at home and abroad, studies intentional homicide benchmark facts and benchmark punishment launched in three phases. Above all, the author gives legislation suggestions to sentencing benchmark through category research of intentional homicide, combining with empirical study and the amplitude characteristics of its legal punishment. Through the practice of sentencing benchmark, the author wants to achieve the original intention that the crime and measurement of penalty should be balanced.