Study On The Trial System Of Criminal In Absentia In China

In 2018,China revised the Criminal Procedure Law and added a new criminal trial in absentia system,which provides institutional support for international fugitive hunt and other cases where trial in absentia is applied,and is of great significance to safeguarding national interests,improving litigation efficiency and ensuring judicial fairness.The specific concept of criminal default trial can be divided into broad sense and narrow sense.The focus of the discussion is the narrow sense,that is,the absentee party can only be the defendant.The legitimacy of the criminal default trial system needs the support of the theoretical basis which is gradually changing from the duty standard to the right standard.At the same time,the system of criminal trial by default has unique characteristics different from the trial at the seat,including the incomplete litigation structure,the limited scope of application and the revocability of the trial result.Through the search and analysis of the cases in which the criminal trial by default system is applied in practice,we can conclude the different problems in the legislative level and the judicial operation level of the criminal trial by default system.First of all,the legislative level mainly includes the ambiguous meaning of the legislative sentences,the excessively strict conditions for the application of the system for corruption and serious crimes,the imperfect system of overseas service,and the unlimited conditions for the exercise of the right of objection.Secondly,the judicial operation level mainly includes the low application rate of the criminal trial by default system,the difficulty of increasing the investigation work in the investigation procedure,increasing the burden of the judicial personnel in the trial procedure,the insufficient protection of the defendant’s rights in the trial and the imperfect procuratorial supervision.The analysis of this kind of problem is compared with the criminal trial in absentia outside the territory.The typical countries of the civil law system and the common law system have sufficient provisions on the criminal trial in absentia,which has important reference significance to the system of our country from the perspectives of the starting procedure,the relief system and the local conditions.The perfection of the criminal trial system by default is mainly embodied in two aspects:legislation and judicial operation.First of all,the legislative level mainly includes the accurate interpretation of legal terms,such as "serious","timely trial",etc.Improve the system of service abroad,such as the establishment of notice service;To limit the right of objection,such as the scope of application,time limit and content;At the same time,we should draw on foreign legislative experience based on China’s national conditions.Secondly,the judicial operation level mainly includes the transformation of investigation concepts and methods,such as the use of big data to carry out international Internet cooperation;Establish a professional judicial personnel mechanism and set up a team of special case personnel;To ensure the exercise of the defendant’s right to defense,and make good use of legal aid and the system of on-duty lawyers;Improve the supporting mechanism of procuratorial supervision.In a word,the criminal trial in absentia system of our country has been established,but it is still in the early stage of exploration,the provisions are very vague,lack of guidance for practice,in the future,we need to improve the criminal trial in absentia system of our country through the specific application of the provisions and the further test of judicial practice.