On The Process Control Of Death Penalty Cases

Death penalty is the state’s most severe punishment which deprives the life of criminals with extreme offense. Currently, a large number of countries have abolished death penalty and some countries have actually stopped death execution. Even in countries retaining death penalty, the penalty has been strictly controlled. The control of death penalty consists of physical control and process control, so the process control of death penalty in countries retaining this punishment has received more and more attention. This paper attempts to provide a better path for China’s death penalty control by studying the problems in the process control of death penalty cases and making recommendations for appropriate improvement.The first part briefly introduces the concept of death penalty cases and the process control as well as the special provisions in China’s death penalty case process control. It proposes the necessity of the death penalty process control under the status quo that it’s impossible for China to abolish death penalty in a short term, and elaborates the feasibility of death case process control according to China’s death penalty policies and judicial reform.Part two mainly introduces the requirements of the United Nations on death penalty cases, special procedures requirements of the United States, Taiwan of China on death penalty cases and makes a brief analysis. These practices have provided some references to the process control of China’s death penalty cases.Party Three focuses on the analysis of some prominent problems in the death penalty case process control exposed in China’s judicial practice, such as the rights of the accused cannot be fully guaranteed, inadequate protection of the interests of victims and their close relatives, unreasonable trial mechanism and trial period, formalization of court trial proceedings, incomplete social coordination mechanism, etc.Part four presents the recommendations for the improvement of death penalty case.Strengthen the eligibility requirements of the defense counsel and daily management to ensure the defendants in death penalty cases to get effective defense; establish automatic appeal system to protect the effective operation of the second instance of death penalty cases. Reform the dual structure model of criminal legal relationship and protect the victims’ right to participate in the proceedings; expand the scope of compensation for death penalty incidental civil action to protect the civil rights of reparations to victims. Expand the scale of collegiate bench, change the rules of collegiality, extend the trial period and ensure the quality of handling death penalty cases. Ensure the testification of key witnesses in death penalty cases, improve the rules of sentencing evidence and debate system to achieve the shift of hearing centered trial mode and achieve the transformation of trial proceedings from formalization to substantiation. Establish the victim assistance system in death penalty cases and improve the jury system to achieve the improvement of social supporting mechanisms for the trial of death penalty cases.In short, the improvement of death penalty process can achieve sufficient protection of the accused, take into account of the basic interests of the victims and make the people understand the requirements of China’s death penalty policy, thus realizing the purpose of implementation of death penalty policy, restriction of the death penalty application, while maintaining social stability and promoting economic development.