CRIMINAL LAW. THE GENERAL PART

Aghayev I.B.
Criminal law. The General part.
Textbook.
Leipzig: «Leipzig University Press», 2015.
360 pages. 35 quires.

Criminal law is an independent fundamental legal branch and also an integral part of legal system of the State. It enters the complex of branches of the criminal cycle alongside criminal procedure law and penal execution law. Basic provisions of the State penal policy are fixed in its institutes and norms.

In all higher educational institutions of juridical profile criminal law is among the major educational disciplines. Its purpose consists in giving to learners the necessary information on punishment of the persons who have committed a socially dangerous act. In other words, it is on cognition of an important activity of law-enforcement bodies, its limits and order.

As an educational discipline (subject of cognition) criminal law aims at training professional lawyers, whose main function is a reasonable and well-timed enforcement, without which the fight against crimes loses its dynamism.

The course of criminal law has three main purposes: general educational, jurisprudential and practical.

General educational value of this subject is associated with the need of improving the overall culture of students — future lawyers. Jurisprudential purpose of the course consists in deepening the theoretical knowledge about the concept, methods, systems, tasks and principles of criminal law; criminal statute; concept and types of crimes; corpus delicti and its elements; criminal responsibility; stages of committing a crime; сomplicity in a crime; multiplicity of crimes and its forms; circumstances excluding the criminality of a deed; purposes and types of punishments; imposition of punishment; release from criminal responsibility and punishment; criminal responsibility of juveniles and other measures of penal nature. Practical role of the course relates to the study of institutes and methods of penal regulation, their positive and negative aspects which may vary in different conditions: positive features may have negative consequences, and vice versa. Knowledge of criminal law theory and practice may help to improve the criminal law regulation with account for specific conditions.

The proposed textbook of criminal law is an important contribution to legal science of Azerbaijan. So, for several years in the law faculties of higher educational institutions of Azerbaijan operate the English sections. Nevertheless, the textbook on criminal law, which is considered to be one of the most important legal branches, has not been published in English yet. In turn, it creates difficulty both for the students studying in English, and for the teachers. The need for publishing the considered book derives from the interests of educational process, and also from the changes occurring in the penal policy of the Azerbaijan Republic and legal thinking of society. It is also necessary to note, that the proposed textbook represents the first textbook, written in English in the history of legal science of Azerbaijan.

The structure of the considered work corresponds to the Criminal Сode of the Azerbaijan Republic which has been adopted in 1999. For fifteen years after its adoption, significant changes and amendments, which reflect the cardinal changes occurring in the spheres of politics, economics and law, the realization of provisions of the Constitution of the Azerbaijan Republic, especially regarding the protection of the rights and freedom of man and priority of universal human values, have been amended to it. All these confirm the dynamic improvement of the criminal legislation of the Azerbaijan Republic, aimed at the development of political, economic and social life of the country. This book covers all amendments made to the Criminal Code, that will allow readers to penetrate more deeply into the problems of criminal legislation and criminal jurisprudence, including the characteristics of the evolution of criminal law views and debatable questions.

Materials of the textbook are represented in nine sections. Each section reflects the essence of criminal law as an independent legal branch.

The first section relates to the conceptual apparatus, method, sources and constitutional bases of the penal policy of the Azerbaijan Republic, because for those who study criminal law understanding its conceptual foundations laid by law doctrine and the Constitution of the Azerbaijan Republic is important.

The second section of the book is devoted to the most important, key institution of criminal law — corpus delicti. Without deep insight of its essence it is impossible to acquire the criminal law. Study of corpus delicti has great importance for strict observance of legality.

The third section defines features of stages of committing a crime and сomplicity in a crime, the fourth — multiplicity of crimes, the fifth — circumstances excluding the criminality of a deed, the sixth — punishment and its imposition, the seventh — release from criminal responsibility and punishment, the eighth — criminal responsibility of juveniles, the ninth — other measures of penal nature.

Work is written on the basis of the course of lectures, delivered by the author in 2000—2014 in «Law Faculty» and «Faculty of international law and international relations» of the Baku State University. Materials of the book are based on scientific and pedagogical researches and practical experiences of criminal law problems. It aims at generalizing results of developing the norms of different legislative branches relating to criminal law regulation, for further use in law-enforcement activities. The performed analysis is intended for better awareness and explanation of the needs for intensification of developing criminal law issues in a new socio-legal context.

The proposed textbook will make sound base for comprehensive study of criminal law and its instruction in higher juridical institutions.

It is also necessary to note that this textbook may be an important source of knowledge in foreign countries for scientific researches in terms of comparative jurisprudence.

The author hopes that this publication will be both interesting and useful to an attentive reader.

CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION – 15

I TITLE
THE CONCEPT OF CRIMINAL LAW

CHAPTER 1
ESSENCE, TASKS AND PRINCIPLES OF CRIMINAL LAW – 19
§ 1. Essence of Criminal law – 19
§ 2. Tasks and functions of Criminal law – 22
§ 3. Criminal law principles – 25

CHAPTER 2
CRIMINAL STATUTE – 30
§ 1. The concept of criminal statute – 30
§ 2. The structure of criminal statute – 32
§ 3. Operation of criminal statute as to time. Retroactive force of the criminal statute – 36
§ 4. Operation of criminal statute in space. Extradition of offenders – 37

CHAPTER 3
THE CONCEPT OF CRIME – 40
§ 1. The essence of a crime – 40
§ 2. Signs of a crime – 43
§ 3. The categories of crimes – 45

II TITLE
CORPUS DELICTI

CHAPTER 4
THE CONCEPT OF CORPUS DELICTI – 49
§ 1. General notion of corpus delicti – 49
§ 2. Signs of corpus delicti – 51
§ 3. Classification of corpus delicti – 54
§ 4. Corpus delicti as an exclusive ground for criminal responsibility – 58
§ 5. Corpus delicti as an exclusive instrument for qualification of crimes – 64

CHAPTER 5
THE OBJECT OF CRIME – 71
§ 1. The concept of the object of crime – 71
§ 2. Classification of the objects of crimes – 73
§ 3. The matter of crime and victim of crime – 77
§ 4. Significance of the object of crime – 80

CHAPTER 6
THE OBJECTIVE ASPECT OF CRIME – 83
§ 1. The concept of the objective aspect of crime – 83
§ 2. Socially dangerous act – 86
§ 3. Socially dangerous consequences – 90
§ 4. Causal link between socially dangerous act and socially dangerous consequences – 95
§ 5. Facultative signs of the objective aspect of crime – 98
§ 6. Significance of the objective aspect of crime – 103

CHAPTER 7
THE SUBJECTIVE ASPECT OF CRIME – 106
§ 1. The concept and importance of the subjective aspect of crime – 106
§ 2. The concept of guilt – 108
§ 3. Form of guilt – 112
§ 4. Intention and its types – 114
§ 5. Negligence and its types – 120
§ 6. Crimes with two forms of guilt – 124
§ 7. Innocent infliction of harm – 126
§ 8. The motive and purpose of crime – 128
§ 9. The emotional state of the person committing a crime – 132
§ 10. Mistake and its types – 134

CHAPTER 8
THE SUBJECT OF CRIME – 141
§ 1. The concept of the subject of crime – 141
§ 2. Age criterion of the subject of crime – 143
§ 3. Sanity – 145
§ 4. Criminal responsibility of persons with mental derangement within sanity – 147
§ 5. Insanity – 150
§ 6. Influence of alcoholic and narcotic intoxication on criminal responsibility – 156
§ 7. Special subject of crime – 160
§ 8. Subject of crime and personality of criminal – 163

III TITLE
STAGES OF COMMITTING A CRIME. COMPLICITY IN A CRIME

CHAPTER 9
STAGES OF COMMITTING A CRIME – 167
§ 1. The concept of the stages of committing a crime – 167
§ 2. Preparation for a crime – 168
§ 3. Attempt to commit a crime – 169
§ 4. Complete crime – 171
§ 5. Voluntary refusal from committing a crime – 173

CHAPTER 10
COMPLICITY IN A CRIME – 176
§ 1. The concept and signs of complicity in a crime -§ 176
§ 2. Forms of complicity in a crime – 178
§ 3. Types of accomplices of a crime – 181
§ 4. Responsibility of the accomplices of a crime – 184

IV TITLE
MULTIPLICITY OF CRIMES

CHAPTER 11
THE CONCEPT OF THE MULTIPLICITY OF CRIMES – 189
§ 1. The unified crime – 189
§ 2. The essence and juridical signs of the multiplicity of crimes – 194

CHAPTER 12
REPETITION OF CRIMES – 197
§ 1. The concept and features of repetition of crimes – 197
§ 2. Simple repetition of crimes – 200
§ 3. Criminal trade – 202

CHAPTER 13
CUMULATIVE CRIMES – 205
§ 1. The concept and signs of cumulative crimes – 205
§ 2. Real cumulation – 207
§ 3. Ideal cumulation – 208
§ 4. Competition of penal norms – 210

CHAPTER 14
RECIDIVISM OF CRIMES – 214
§ 1. The concept and signs of the recidivism of crimes – 214
§ 2. Types of the recidivism of crimes – 217

V TITLE
CIRCUMSTANCES EXCLUDING СRIMINALITY OF A DEED

CHAPTER 15
FEATURES OF CIRCUMSTANCES EXCLUDING СRIMINALITY OF A DEED – 223
§ 1. Necessary defence – 223
§ 2. The infliction of harm on detained person, who has committed a crime – 227
§ 3. Extreme necessity – 230
§ 4. Justified risk – 232
§ 5. Execution of order or instruction – 234

VI TITLE
PUNISHMENT AND ITS IMPOSITION

CHAPTER 16
THE CONCEPT AND SYSTEM OF PUNISHMENTS – 237
§ 1. The concept and purposes of punishment – 238
§ 2. The concept of the system of punishments – 242
§ 3. Fine – 246
§ 4. Deprivation of the right to hold certain offices or practice certain activities – 248
§ 5. Community service – 250
§ 6. Correctional labour – 253
§ 7. Deprivation of liberty – 257
§ 8. Punishments, applied only as additional – 260
§ 9. Punishments, applied to military personnel – 263

CHAPTER 17
IMPOSITION OF PUNISHMENT – 267
§ 1. General principles for imposition of punishment – 267
§ 2. Circumstances mitigating and aggravating punishment. Imposition of a milder punishment, than provided for a certain crime – 273
§ 3. Imposition of punishment for preliminary and joint criminal activities – 278
§ 4. Imposition of punishment for multiplicity of crimes not involving the previous conviction of the perpetrator – 281
§ 5. Imposition of punishment for recidivism of crimes – 284

VII TITLE
RELEASE FROM CRIMINAL RESPONSIBILITY AND PUNISHMENT

CHAPTER 18
RELEASE FROM CRIMINAL RESPONSIBILITY – 287
§ 1. The concept and grounds for release from criminal responsibility – 287
§ 2. Release from criminal responsibility due to active repentance – 289
§ 3. Release from criminal responsibility due to reconciliation with the victim of crime – 291
§ 4. Release from criminal responsibility due to change in situation – 293
§ 5. Release from criminal responsibility due to expiration of limitation period – 295

CHAPTER 19
RELEASE FROM PUNISHMENT – 297
§ 1. The concept and grounds for release from punishment – 297
§ 2. Conditional early release from the punishment and replacing the unserved term of the punishment with a milder one – 301
§ 3. Release from punishment due to illness – 305
§ 4. Suspended punishment for pregnant women and persons with infants –  308
§ 5. Release from punishment due to expiration of the limitation period of the judgement – 311
§ 6. Conditional conviction – 312

CHAPTER 20
AMNESTY, PARDON, CONVICTION – 318
§ 1. Amnesty – 319
§ 2. Pardon – 320
§ 3. Conviction – 324

VIII TITLE
CRIMINAL RESPONSIBILITY OF JUVENILES

CHAPTER 21
FEATURES OF THE CRIMINAL RESPONSIBILITY AND PUNISHMENT OF JUVENILES – 329
§ 1. Criminal responsibility and punishment of juveniles – 329
§ 2. Release of juveniles from criminal responsibility and punishment  – 332

IX TITLE
OTHER MEASURES OF PENAL NATURE

CHAPTER 22
FEATURES AND TYPES OF OTHER MEASURES OF PENAL NATURE – 337
§ 1. Compulsory measures of medical nature – 337
§ 2. Special confiscation – 344
§ 3. Penal measures applied to legal entities – 348