Research On The Rights Of Criminal Victims’ Sentencing Recommendations

For a long time, Chinese criminal legal system has not established the rights of thevictim sentencing recommendations, and the legitimate interests of the victim has not beenadequately and effectively protected. The rights of criminal victim sentencingrecommendation is the rights that victims to collect evidence and cite evidence, crossexamination, and express views on the debate on the issue of criminal defendant’s sentencingin criminal proceedings. Common law countries, such as the United States, Australia, andBritain, have established legal system of victims’ sentencing recommendation. Take the U.S.for example, Code of Criminal Procedure states "victim impact statement", and identifies therights of victims’ sentencing recommendations. To ensure the realization of the rights ofcriminal victims’ sentencing recommendation, the U.S. Code of Criminal Procedure providesfor sentencing procedures. This paper describes the existing jurisprudence which the rights ofcriminal victim sentencing recommendation based on. They are the need for interests’ equityin public prosecution system, the need for identifies of sentencing facts, and the need foreffective protection of legitimate rights and interests of victims. Because of the existence ofqualitatively difference between identify the facts of the case and identify the facts ofsentence, it is necessary to form independent sentencing procedures. This paper, from theperspective of existing laws and the experience of criminal judicial practice of victims’sentencing recommendation, points out the necessity and feasibility of requiring victims’sentencing recommendation. The Code of Criminal Procedure should establish a set ofrelatively independent sentencing procedures, and established the independent dominantposition of the victim to protect the sentencing recommendations rights of victims, from theaspects of procedural and substantive.This article is divided into three parts. The first part elaborates on victims’ sentencingrecommendation, defines the related concept of the rights of victim criminal sentencingrecommendations, and clarifies the sentencing justice and the origin of victims’ sentencingrecommendation rights. After study the history of criminal victims relief, this paper pointsout that, the rights of victim sentencing recommendations, is a victims’ litigation rights, generate from the revenge of the most primitive mentality of the people. Under the statepower to intervene in the criminal prosecution, the rights of victim criminal sentencingrecommendations appear from the interests balance the victim and the defendant, countriesreached in sentencing defendant. The second part introduces “Victim Impact Statement” ofthe common law countries, and makes assessment of reference about the rights of victims ofsentencing recommendation system design of common law countries. The third part discussesthe security system for victims’ sentencing recommendation, analyzes of the legislativeprotection for crime victims’ sentencing recommendations rights in our country, pointing outthe necessity and feasibility of our law to require victims’ sentencing recommendation. Thefinal part proposes related initiatives to protect our victims’ sentencing recommendation,specifically covers establishing relatively independent procedures and the independentdominant positions of the victim.