The Plea of Alibi in International Criminal Law as Viewed Through the Prism of the Common Law

The plea of alibi has acquired a prominent place in the short history of modern international criminal law, just as it does in common law criminal trials. At the ICTR, for instance, it is pleaded in virtually every case. It is expected that alibi will continue to vex the processes of international criminal courts and tribunals, especially given the exclusive focus of international criminal law on individual criminal responsibility, much of which has to do with the presence of accused persons at scenes of planning, conspiracy, instigation, aiding and abetting and execution of crimes. The plea of alibi in international criminal law is still a concept under construction. Jurisprudence is rife with uncertain propositions, tentative analyses and incomplete ideas. In the circumstances, there is a need to pay close attention to this area of the law. A constant review is required, with the aim of improving the law of alibi for its future application in international criminal proceedings. An attempt at such a review is made in the present article. The author reviews, among other things, the meaning of the term ??alibi??; whether it is a ??defence??; the feature of notice of alibi; burdens of proof in alibi cases, the prosecutorial duty to disprove the alibi, the need for clarity in the application of the principle of prosecutorial duty to disprove the alibi, and whether there should be a prosecutorial duty to investigate the alibi when timely notice is given; as well as alibi and the right to silence. The author approaches the discussions from the perspective of the common law, primarily due to the prominence of the plea of alibi in common law criminal trials in contrast to inquisitorial criminal trials.     

Written records of police interrogation: differential registration as determinant of statement credibility and interrogation quality

Abstract

The backbone of Dutch criminal procedure is the case file including a large number of written records. In Dutch courts the focus is primarily on evaluation of written records. The written record of police interrogation is a mediated account of the interrogation itself. In this study we explore how individual differences in the production of written records by police officers affect the jurists' evaluation of the suspect's story and of the quality of the interrogation itself. In the first study, five police officers produced written records of one and the same interrogation on video of a denying suspect. In the second study, three of those written records are evaluated by jurists. They are asked to determine story acceptability of the suspect and procedural fairness of the interrogation. Findings show that a short and simple interrogation of a suspect results in written records that are quite different (Study I). It is further shown that these differences affect the jurists' evaluation of some of the core issues addressed in a criminal process (Study II). Implications of these findings are discussed as well as a number of possible ways to improve the current state of affairs.     

The Federal/State Criminal Prosecution Nexus: A Case Study in Cooperation and Discretion

Contemporary studies of prosecutorial decision making at the state level are infrequent, and even fewer studies examine the discretionary decisions of federal prosecutors. In addition, virtually no scholarly literature examines the growing overlap between federal and state criminal jurisdiction. This paper advances both theoretical and empirical understandings of the organizational and political contexts in which prosecutorial discretion takes place by exploring the nexus between federal and state criminal jurisdictions. Drawing on interview research in a large urban area with several active federal/state cooperative prosecution programs, we suggest that these cooperative relations open new avenues of discretion for local and federal prosecutors; limit the authority of other court actors, including state judges; and erode the distinctions between federal and local criminal jurisdiction.     

检察权谦抑性的法理基础

刑事诉讼中的检察权行使,要尽可能地保持克制、妥协、宽容,这就是检察权的谦抑性.检察权的谦抑性是受刑事诉讼法学、刑法学、犯罪社会学和刑事政策学等学科理论和实践发展的深刻影响而形成的.检察权行使的谦抑性最终要由具体的检察官来体现和贯彻,因此,一方面要从立法上人手;另一方面,要通过培养心怀谦抑的检察官入手,从而使刑事法的谦抑理念与检察官内在的谦抑品性相协调.     

国家刑罚权与检察职能的关系

现代检察制度是随着国家将刑罚权分解并由不同国家机关承担侦查、起诉与审判职能而产生与发展起来的,是法治思想的产物。刑事法治的要旨在于对国家刑罚权进行限制以保障公民个体的权利。我国法治实践表明,检察机关的根本任务应从侧重刑罚的保护功能(惩治犯罪)向刑罚保护功能和保障功能(保障人权)并举,维护国家刑罚权良性运行的轨道转变,这不仅是刑事司法规律对检察权运行的本质要求,也是"法律监督"属性在刑事司法领域的本质含义和具体体现。     

我国侦查权的程序性控制

我国现有的侦查权程序性控制表现为以内部自律的科层制控制为主、外部他律的分权式控制为辅的基本制度格局。从制度构造的表象看,传统的线性分工模式、功利导向的控制方式和不彻底的程序性救济,暴露了侦查权程序性控制体系的残缺和现有制度的羸弱。在社会文化和制度环境的作用下,长期的科层制控制和检察监督所形成的固化观念,使我国侦查权的程序性控制陷入了理念上的“内卷化”,并逐步消解着以现有制度为对象而进行的种种机制性改良尝试。立足于未来发展,我国侦查权程序性控制的制度远景应该是建立合乎我国国情的司法审查模式,使侦查权的控制走向彻底的法治化和专业化。在既有的法律框架下,侦查权程序性控制的制度近景则是以非法证据排除规则为后盾,通过与检察监督的衔接,建立审前程序中以检察机关为中心、审判程序中以法院为中心的二阶层控制模式;并通过与案例指导、国家赔偿、司法建议等制度的配套运行,形成制度合力,倒逼侦查方式和技术的改善,进而促进制度远景目标的实现。     

监所检察权利保障职能的优化与实现-基于对新《刑事诉讼法》的研判

修改后的《刑事诉讼法》基于司法文明的要求,在更高层次和水平上完善了监所检察权利保障的司法职能。然而,监所检察．Y-作的客观现状与新《刑事诉讼法》的现实要求之间的矛盾在一定程度上消弭和制约了监所检察监督职能的发挥。因此,如何深化对新《刑事诉讼法》中涉及监所检察权利保障理念变革与制度更新的思考,是我们全面落实新《刑事诉讼法》、正确履行监所检察权利保障职能着重探讨的课题。我们应当以强化监所检察权利保障的理论基础为逻辑起点,优化监所检察权利保障职能的立法设计,并就如何落实好、发挥好新《刑事诉讼法》赋予监所检察的权利保障职能,解决好监所检察的执法理念转变、加强基础保障和机制创新等问题作出贡献。     

刑事抗诉制度的立法完善

多年的刑事抗诉司法实践以无可争辩的事实,证明了其在保障司法公正等方面具有不可替代的作用,但是现有刑事抗诉制度也存在提起条件不明确、履行抗诉的程序不完善以及对被害人权益保护功能发挥不足等一系列问题。这些问题的存在已经严重制约了刑事抗诉职权的履行;因此,必须进一步细化刑事抗诉提起的标准,分别按照二审程序抗诉和审判监督程序抗诉的不同特点完善刑事抗诉程序,切实保障刑事被害人的抗诉请求权,增强抗诉请求对检察机关的制约效力,以充分保障其合法权益。     

BLINDFOLDED JUSTICE LED BY AN INVISIBLE HAND: Criminal Justice as a Variable of Exchange Transactions

The article argues that instead of viewing the criminal justice process as determined by judicial or prosecutorial discretion, it should be seen as the outcome of exchange transactions that are designed to adjust resource constraints between case inflows and outflows. These exchanges, over which judges and prosecutors have only little control in the aggregate, generate changes in the criminal justice system in an unplanned or "invisible hand" fashion. They alter the sentence level, affect the standard of proof and the rules of evidence, and transform the function of trials. Several of the analytical conclusions are confirmed by an empirical investigation.     

Italian criminal trials: Lost in transition? Differing degrees of criminal justice convergence in Italy and Australia

The Italian Code of Criminal Procedure underwent extraordinary reform in 1988, from an established inquisitorial system to incorporate key elements of adversarialism. This reform sought to create greater separation of powers and efficiency of the trial system. Two decades on, Italian criminal trials continue to be overly protracted, and struggle with maintaining independence of the judiciary (particularly a distinct separation from the prosecutorial arm). This paper primarily examines the philosophical foundations of inquisitorial and adversarial systems, and theories of the policy making process. It develops a theoretical framework for understanding the transformation of the Italian trial system, and the challenges that have resulted from combining two divergent approaches to criminal justice. Various important lessons are drawn for criminal justice community, as many jurisdictions are engaging in similar convergence of these systems as a result of global influence and change.     

我国检察权的反思与重构——以公诉权为核心的分析

检察机关的基本职能是公诉 ,检察权在本质上主要表现为公诉权 ,以公诉权为基本内容的检察权在本质属性和终极意义上应属于行政权。检察机关在刑事诉讼中的各项权力都是具体的诉讼程序性权力 ,与所谓的法律监督机关、法律监督权并不存在必然的关联性。应该按照检察机关就是公诉机关的思路去改革司法制度 ,建立以公诉机关为核心、主导的审判前程序 ,同时改革现行的逮捕和其他侦查措施的审查批准制度。     

刑事诉讼检察监督与被害人权益保护问题探讨

从阐明刑事诉讼检察监督的涵义入手,介绍了刑事诉讼检察监督与被害人权益保护之间的关系,进而指出其在被害人权益保护方面存在的问题,最后结合我国司法现状,就检察监督如何加强对被害人的保护提出若干建议.     

行政执法与刑事执法衔接机制改革初探--以检察权的性质为理论基点

行政执法与刑事执法衔接机制改革问题是当前理论界与实务界关注的热点,完善该机制的立足点和出发点是检察权的性质问题。本文即以检察权的性质为理论基点,在评析学界各种观点后,提出检察权属于行政权结论;并以该结论为基础,进一步阐释该机制的应然模式和在我国现阶段的改革建议。     

检察官起诉裁量权的外部控制及其反思——以国际刑事诉讼为视角

在国际刑事诉讼中,检察官起诉裁量权的外部控制不可或缺,而单纯的外部控制却凸显范围有限、效果不佳、成本高昂等局限与不足。与单纯的外部控制相比,内部控制具有主动性、自律性的特点,且这种内部监督和控制的限度还与国际刑事法治的境界相契合。在当前检察官的起诉裁量权广泛存在且业已渗入非缔约国司法领域的情况下,只有将基于内外因辩证关系原理指导下的双重控制有机结合起来,才能防范裁量权滥用,促进实现裁量正义,保证国际刑事诉讼中检察官裁量权的公正行使。     

从“封存”到“消灭”——未成年人轻罪犯罪记录封存制度之解读与评价

新《刑事诉讼法》第275条规定的未成年人轻罪犯罪记录封存制度是我国未成年人刑事司法制度的重要发展,对未成年犯复学、升学、就业以及顺利回归社会具有积极的现实意义.但是,该规定不仅过于原则,缺乏可操作性,而且适用对象过窄、对适用主体和适用程序也都未作任何规定.这些都将严重影响该制度的运作和实施效果,甚至可能使其沦为制度上的“花瓶”和实践中的“鸡肋”.为充分发挥该制度的重要价值和意义,应当将其“升级”为未成年人犯罪记录消灭制度.我国在制定有关未成年人的法律以及司法解释或规范性文件时需要“接力”和“合力”,但更需要“给力”.     

America's response to terrorism: An empirical analysis of federal intervention strategies during the 1980s

Despite considerable interest among criminologists, the literature on terrorism has been largely atheoretical and nonempirical. This paper provides the results of a national study of federal criminal cases that arose from the FBI's Counterterrorism Program during the 1980s. The strategies of federal prosecutors are discussed in relation to Turk's notions of “explicit politicality” and “exceptional vagueness.” Evidence shows that in keeping with historical studies of American political crime, prosecutorial efforts to depict terrorists as common criminals have been the most frequently used and most successful strategy. Prosecutors' efforts to explicitly politicize the terrorists' crimes have been largely unsuccessful and are rarely employed.     

Legal Ambiguity in Managerial Assessments of Criminal Records

In an age of widespread background checks, we ask how managers in different organizational contexts navigate legal ambiguity in assessing applicants' criminal history information, based on interview data obtained in a recent field experiment. The study builds on institutional analyses of the social sources of workplace legality to describe how employers consider applicants with criminal histories. We find that some organizations set explicit standards to guide hiring decisions, providing concrete policies on how to treat applicants with records. Where such procedural mandates are lacking, however, hiring managers turn to a micro‐rational decision process to evaluate potential risk and liability. These individualized approaches create inconsistencies in how the law is interpreted and applied across organizations, as evidenced by actual hiring behavior in the field experiment.     

关于检察权司法职能的再思考

我国检察权的本质属性是法律监督性.这种本质属性是通过我国检察机关的一般性质、工作内容以及工作方式表现出来的.而从检察权概念的学术争议与检察权的司法属性来看,检察权应承载司法职能.本文在提倡检察机关应直接参与社会管理活动的背景下,重新审视了导致检察权司法职能弱化和行政化倾向的主要原因.认为只有正确理解检察机关的地位和作用,在社会管理中充分发挥检察权的司法功能,才能实现检察权参与社会管理.     

Well-informed? Well Represented? Well Nigh Powerless? Victims and Prosecutorial Decision-making

This article provides a brief overview of the ways in which prosecutors must engage with victims in the course of their work in criminal proceedings and what formal roles victims can assume in criminal proceedings. Besides exploring what rights victims have per se in criminal proceedings, analysis is provided as to what it means to be an additional prosecutor or a private prosecutor in several European criminal justice systems. A brief analysis of the effects these rights and the use of prosecutorial discretion has on victims is provided.     

中国刑事案卷制度研究——以证据案卷为重心

中国刑事程序的流转及司法决策的作出皆以各种证据和文书材料构成的案卷为主要载体。英美法系国家与中国的刑事案卷制度，在案卷的完备性与简单性、案卷使用时空的伸展性与抑制性方面表现出重大差异。中国与大陆法系国家的刑事案卷制度相似性较多，其中最为重要之处在于法院应审查起诉机关移送的侦查卷宗，以此作为定案依据；二者主要在案卷制作的单一性与多元性、案卷作用的绝对性与相对性方面存在区别。中国刑事案卷制度的独特性可从司法权力组织的类型、司法目的与诉讼构造角度予以解释。中国刑事案卷制度的大部分特点在未来相当长时间内仍将保留，但在形成和使用上将发生变化。