Empirical Research On Conditional Non-prosecution System

Conditional non-prosecution system established in the legislation, is not only a summary of pilot experience throughout the national prosecuting authority and a reference for the extraterritorial system but also the implementation and deepening of the criminal policy of combining punishment with leniency, the individualization of punishment and the principle of priority to the protection of minors. Conditional non-prosecution system not merely points out the direction for practice of conditional non-prosecution system, also provides a clear legal basis. It will be conducive to delinquent minors successfully returning to society, conserve judicial resources, and promote social harmony and stability. In this paper, taking the Longzihu District as sample, the author makes an empirical research of conditional non-prosecution practice in Bengbu urban areas, and finds that in more than two years since the implementation of the Criminal Procedure Code, many new problems, which legislators once did not take into account in the judicial practice, have occurred. It is necessary to make further adjustment and improvement on juvenile conditional non-prosecution system.First, this paper introduces the operating conditions of conditional non-prosecution system in the Longzihu District in Bengbu city of Anhui province. An institution which is responsible for all juvenile criminal cases in the Longzihu District has been established specifically to handle juvenile criminal cases after the implementation of the new Criminal Procedure Code. The conditional non-prosecution system includes the scope and conditions, attached conditions and treatment contents, starting and decision function, monitoring and supervision, beginning-end inspection mechanism, the right to dissent and other content exercised by juvenile suspects and so on. Through detailed conditional non-prosecution system configuration of the Longzihu District, combined with specific cases, one can fully understand the basic operating situation of the Longzihu District conditional non-prosecution system.Secondly, the operating conditions of conditional non-prosecution system are evaluated. In the application of conditional non-prosecution process, Longzihu District fully reflects the "principle of dual protection", which means the protection of the legitimate interests of juvenile suspects and of victims. Some experience is also worth learning, such as establishment of an independent juvenile criminal prosecution agencies, centralized processing of delinquent cases, humanistic care in reeducation and full protection of legitimate rights of minors. They monitor and inspect with individualized instruction, consciously accept external oversight, and innovate the methods of supervision and inspection. Owing to the overgeneralization of conditional non-prosecution system in the Criminal Procedure Code, problems appear, like strict regulations on scope and attached conditions, conflicts in evaluation of public security organs, integration of assistance and education resources, and later relief of processing results after test period. The following also needs attention: prescriptions of the dissent rights which are not applicable to the conditional non-prosecution decision, consequences of the exercise of the dissent rights that are too absolute, and connections with related systems.Finally, the paper makes recommendations for further practice of conditional non-prosecution system, and proposes legislation to improve the conditional non-prosecution system. By analyzing Longzihu District’s judicial practice, some problems that legislators usually ignore can be discovered. So prosecutors in practice should accurately grasp the scope and conditions of conditional,should be appropriate to relax applicable conditions and range in the coming legislation. Local prosecutors should strengthen communication with the public security organs, solve the problem of conflict with the public security evaluation, and eliminate the unreasonable evaluation mechanism in the future legislation. Prosecutors should integrate admonishing resources in the good work of supervision and inspection, clarify the legal status of social welfare forces, pay attention to the rights of the decision after the expiry of the test questions. They also need to take notice of adding corresponding regulations on the issues of the dissent rights which are not applicable to conditional non-prosecution system. They should handle the case of juvenile suspects’ objections to conditional non-prosecution with different situations, and do well in the connection with relevant systems. In future legislation, all of these should be considered and regulated.