On The Probative Force Of The Criminal Evidence

How to evaluate and judge the probative force of evidence is always the key question of the development of the law of evidence. The system of evidence is divided into three types according to different evaluations of evidence. They are system of divinity evidence, system of legal evidence and discretionary evaluation system. Currently, both continental law system and common law system adhere to the evaluating mode of proof based on discretional evaluation of evidence. Although two laws have different connotations and extensions on discretional evaluation of evidence, they have something in common in the significance and its role of the research and discussion on the evidence reasoning mode and the probative force of evidence. Meanwhile, it restricts the judgment of the probative force of evidence by combining experience rules with logical reasoning. Moreover, it restrains the judge’s subjectivity in adjudicating a case in a way of the standard of evidential effect, contentious procedure and restriction afterwards. If the standard of proof is considered as "Goldbach’s conjecture", the probative force of evidence will be the access to.The probative force of criminal evidence is the process and outcome of the subjective value judged by the proof subject which is directed at the criminal evidence to prove the main facts of the case itself. Whether the criminal evidences have the probative force or its weight is depended upon the relation and its degree between the evidences and case facts. Apart from the essential problem making up of case facts at issue, the efficiency of the criminal evidences proving the case facts is derived from the record of the objective facts. The criminal evidence will be proper if it is after the evaluation of credibility, facticity and accuracy. Then a question how to correctly judge and assess the probative force of criminal evidence arises.Criminal evidence is the unity between form and content of information and its probative force has weight. The amount of evidence information may be generally divided into many smaller evidences which is called evidence unit. Besides, the relationship between the criminal evidence and its fact or case fact is also regarded as a mathematical probability. It is a better view to judge the probative force of evidence by dividing the criminal information to analyze the formation of criminal evidence and the variety of probative force. Without the division, it would be difficult for us to find an objective, proper and accurate way to evaluate a complicated evidence material which is even mixed with the truth and the false or sometimes with pieces or fragments. On the contrary, after recognized and reorganized, the process of the divided evidence information verifying evidence fact and case fact is the composing of the probative force. The above decided by human’s knowledge, experience, understanding of the objective world and conclusion of cause and effect, is the key of evaluating the probative force of criminal evidence.The probative force of criminal evidence is not only closely related to the relationship between judicial workers, evidences and facts and common knowledge of proof mode, but also the formation, discovery, collection, definition of criminal evidence. In addition, the probative force of criminal evidence may be considered as the combination of the link, verification and reasoning of evidence on the basis of the existing link and verifying proof mode. On this basis, the author advocates evaluation mode of classical probability or fuzzy probability according to different types of evidence and their roles in reasoning. The author also puts forward a new proposal that we may assess the divided evidence in ratio by assigning a value to it and its link.