不宜对未成年犯罪人适用罚金刑

罚金,是人民法院判处犯罪分子向国家缴纳一定数额金钱的刑罚方法,是我国刑法所规定的三种附加刑之一。刑事处罚中适用罚金的对象主要是以侵犯财产为目的的犯罪,如经济犯罪,以营利、贪财为目的的犯罪等,只有少数不涉及财产类的轻罪在处罚上也适用罚金。罚金刑对犯罪人在经济上实施惩罚,这对某些贪财刑的犯罪人来说,其效果有时优于自由刑。对于犯罪情节不严重的犯罪分子本着“惩罚与教育”相结合的原则,判处罚金比判处自由刑更为合适。然而若罚金刑适用不当也会产生一定的负面影响,特别是罚金刑的滥用在实际中产生了一定的不良反应。笔者现就…     

侵犯知识产权犯罪数额认定分析

数额在认定和处罚侵犯知识产权犯罪中具有重要作用。侵犯知识产权犯罪的数额有:非法经营数额、销售金额、违法所得数额、犯罪行为所涉及的物件数量、行为直接造成经济损失数额。自然人犯罪与单位犯罪应有不同的起刑数额标准。目前采用的刑法概括规定和司法解释具体规定数额的模式是合理的。     

浮动罚金刑数额的承担模式研究

在单位犯罪或共同犯罪中,关于浮动罚金刑数额的承担模式存在3种选择,即个别罚金承担模式,全案罚金承担模式与单位罚金承担模式。这些模式之间的对立,源于法律规定的不同以及对罚金刑的法律性质与处罚目的的理解上的差异。在单位犯罪的场合,不存在自然人仅承担自由刑的特殊规定时,就不能依照单位罚金承担模式,仅判处单位罚金刑。全案罚金处罚模式与其他罚金规定方式下的承担模式以及自由刑的承担模式不协调,有违"部分行为,全部责任"的共犯处罚原则。坚持罚金刑的纯粹刑罚说,站在保证罚金一身专属性的立场,为实现罚金刑的合理目的,同时也为满足罪刑均衡的要求,应当采用个别罚金承担模式。     

罚金刑数额立法模式的优化途径探析

当前,我过的罚金刑适用范围逐步扩大,罚金刑数额立法逐步改进,但对于罚金刑数额的规定并非尽善尽美。对此,应结合我国的实际需要和现实可能性进行完善,即逐步减少无限额罚金制的适用;增强限额罚金制与自由刑的协调性     

中日侵犯商业秘密犯罪比较研究

日本侵犯商业秘密犯罪中的商业秘密包括秘密管理性、非公知性与有价值性三个要素,较中国商业秘密构成要素的界定更为合理。中日将违约而使用、公开权利人商业秘密的行为犯罪化有违刑法的谦抑性,应予取消。中国侵犯商业秘密犯罪不宜效仿日本只定性不定量的立法模式,对于司法实践中出现的重大损失等情节的适用困境,可以通过增设定罪量刑情节的方式予以完善。中日侵犯商业秘密犯罪刑罚设置中应采取限额罚金与倍比罚金相结合的罚金制;针对不同的危害行为与主体增设多个量刑档次,做到罪刑结构的协调。     

论我国单位犯罪双罚制刑事立法的不足及完善

双罚制是我国单位犯罪的主要处罚方式,但是在立法上存在刑罚种类单一,罚金刑数额规定不科学等方面的缺陷,因此应当对相关立法进行完善,增加对犯罪单位的处罚方法,明确规定罚金刑的量刑幅度,以更好的惩罚和预防单位犯罪,从而保障我国市场经济健康快速的发展。     

简论罚金刑中的几个问题

随着罚金刑适用范围的扩大．在司法实践中罚金刑的运用也出现的一些新情况、新问题。本文就实践中出现的一些情况和问题略作分析．并作探讨,以求见教。 一、关于罚金的数额问题 罚金的数额直接标示着罚金刑的轻重,体现着国家对犯罪行为人惩诫的强度。但司法实践中在确定罚金数额时却问题不少,主要有： （ｌ）确定罚金数额的依据不明确,法官主观随意性过大。我国修改后的《刑法》第５２条规定：“判处罚金,应当根据犯罪情节决定罚金额数额。”据此我们可以认为,确定罚金数额的唯一依据只有一个,即犯罪情节。但审判实践中,审判人员在…     

罚金刑数额的确定

罚金刑数额的确定□万选才修订后的刑法第五十二条规定：“判处罚金，应当根据犯罪情节决定罚金数额。”这是刑法关于如何确定罚金数额的原则规定，具体操作时，还有很多问题值得认真研究。本文拟对此作一探讨。一、影响罚金数额确定的犯罪情节范围犯罪情节是指犯罪构成事...     

试论网络盗版行为的几个刑法问题

我国刑法对网络著作权的保护采取的是二元主义,只对某些严重的网络盗版行为才作为犯罪处理,两高虽对此类案件联合出台了三个司法解释,但司法实践中仍存较大分歧.在刑事管辖权上,对犯罪行为地可采用电脑等终端设备所在地,对犯罪结果地可采用著作权人的户口所在地或主要营业地；对网络盗版行为人主观方面是否“以营利为目的”,应采用有限制地适用“以营利为目的”；在立法上应适当扩大侵犯著作权罪的行为范围；在刑罚方法上可增加资格刑的处罚方法,在刑罚最高刑的配置上可降低自由刑的处罚标准而提高罚金的数额.     

销售侵权复制品罪及其相关问题的探讨

在两高“知识产权司法解释”颁布前,行为人销售侵权复制品尤其是销售盗版光碟行为,在审判实践中被分别以销售侵权复制品罪和非法经营罪予以刑事处罚,存在执法不统一现象。两高“知识产权司法解释”颁布后,以前发布的有关侵犯知识产权犯罪的司法解释与之抵触的,不再适用。由于销售侵权复制品罪与非法经营罪不存在竞合关系,因此,对于销售侵权复制品行为,应严格按照两高“知识产权司法解释”的规定,违法所得数额巨大的,作为侵犯知识产权犯罪,以销售侵权复制品罪予以刑事处罚。     

Bhartṛhari and Maṇḍana on Avidyā

The concept of avidyā is one of the central categories in the Advaita of Śaṇkara and Maṇḍana. Shifting the focus from māyā, interpreted either as illusion or as the divine power, this concept brings ignorance to the forefront in describing duality and bondage. Although all Advaitins accept avidyā as a category, its scope and nature is interpreted in multiple ways. Key elements in Maṇḍana’s philosophy include the plurality of avidyā, individual selves as its substrate and the Brahman as its field (viṣaya), and the distinction in avidyā between non-apprehension and misapprehension. A closer investigation shows that Maṇḍana is directly influenced by Bhartṛhari’s linguistic non-dualism in developing the concept of avidyā. This study also compares other key constituents such as vivartta and pariṇāma that are relevant to the analysis of avidyā. As the concept of counter-image (pratibimba) emerges as a distinct stream of Advaita subsequent to Maṇḍana, this study also compares the application of pratibimba in the writings of Bhartṛhari and Maṇḍana.     

Unraveling the <Emphasis Type="Italic">Kāvyaprakāśa</Emphasis>: Jayadeva Pīyūṣavarṣa’s idiosyncratic sequence of topics in the <Emphasis Type="Italic">Candrāloka</Emphasis>

In his twelfth century alaṃkāraśāstra, the Candrāloka, Jayadeva Pīyūṣavarṣa reverses the sequence of topics found in Mammaṭa’s Kāvyapr-akāśa, an earlier and immensely popular work. With such a structural revisionism, Jayadeva asserts the autonomy of his own work and puts forth an ambitious critique of earlier approaches to literary analysis. Jayadeva investigates the technical and aesthetic components of poetry in the first part of the Candrāloka, prior to his formal semantic investigations in the latter half of the text, thus suggesting that aesthetic evaluations of poetry beneficially inform scientific investigations of language. Jayadeva’s organization of his chapters on the semantic operations, moreover, intimates that the study of suggestive and metaphoric functions of language clarifies our understanding of denotation, which is conventionally understood to be the primary and direct path of verbal designation.     

The Supreme Array Scripture: A New Interpretation of the Title “Gaṇḍavyūha-sūtra”

This article argues for a new interpretation of the Sanskrit compound gaṇḍa-vyūha as it is used in the common title of the Mahāyāna text the Gaṇḍavyūha-Sūtra.The author begins by providing a brief history of the sūtra’s appellations in Chinese and Tibetan sources. Next, the meanings of gaṇḍa (the problematic member of the compound) are explored. The author proposes that contemporary scholars have overlooked a meaning of gaṇḍa occurring in some compounds, wherein gaṇḍa can mean simply “great,” “big” or “massive.” This general sense is particularly common in the compound gaṇda-śaila (a “massive rock” or “boulder”) and is found in such texts as the Bhāgavata Purāṇa, the Harivaṃśa and the Harṣacarita. Following the discussion of Gaṇḍa, the author examines the term vyūha (“array”) as it is used in the Gaṇḍavyūha-sūtra. The article concludes with the suggestion that a more appropriate translation of the Gaṇḍavyūha-sūtra would be “The Supreme array Scripture.”     

Evaluation of six presumptive tests for blood, their specificity, sensitivity, and effect on high molecular-weight DNA

Luminol, leuchomalachite green, phenolphthalein, Hemastix, Hemident, and Bluestar are all used as presumptive tests for blood. In this study, the tests were subjected to dilute blood (from 1:10,000 to 1:10,000,000), many common household substance, and chemicals. Samples were tested for DNA to determine whether the presumptive tests damaged or destroyed DNA. The DNA loci tested were D2S1338 and D19S433. Leuchomalachite green had a sensitivity of 1:10,000, while the remaining tests were able to detect blood to a dilution of 1:100,000. Substances tested include saliva, semen, potato, tomato, tomato sauce, tomato sauce with meat, red onion, red kidney bean, horseradish, 0.1 M ascorbic acid, 5% bleach, 10% cupric sulfate, 10% ferric sulfate, and 10% nickel chloride. Of all the substances tested, not one of the household items reacted with every test; however, the chemicals did. DNA was recovered and amplified from luminol, phenolphthalein, Hemastix, and Bluestar, but not from leuchomalachite green or Hemident.     

Monks Who Have Sex: Pārājika Penance in Indian Buddhist Monasticisms

In the study of Buddhism it is commonly accepted that a monk or nun who commits a pārājika offence is permanently and irrevocably expelled from the Buddhist monastic order. This view is based primarily on readings of the Pāli Vinaya. With the exception of the Pāli Vinaya, however, all other extant Buddhist monastic law codes (Dharmaguptaka, Mahāsāṅghika, Mahīśāsaka, Sarvāstivāda and Mūlasarvāstivāda) contain detailed provisions for monks and nuns who commit pārājikas but nevertheless wish to remain within the saṅgha. These monastics are not expelled. Rather, they are granted a special status known as the śikṣādattaka. In this paper I explore the rules. concerning pārājika penance and the śikṣādattaka with specific regard to monastic celibacy. Given that five out of six extant law codes recognise this remarkable accommodation to the rule of celibacy, I argue that we must look to Vinayas other than the Pāli Vinaya if we are to arrive at a nuanced and representative view of Indian Buddhist monasticism.

Grant me chastity and continence, but not yet. Augustine of Hippo (354–430 C.E.)

     

Family breakdown and the ‘Welfare Child’ in 19th and 20th century Britain

This article traces new cycles of interest in past children as distinct from past childhood. Recent work highlighting that a conceptualisation of childhood existed even in periods with few written records closes the chapter begun by Philippe Ariès in 1960. Instead, there has been a new surge of interest in children on the edges of family life, as well as children in similarly liminal positions between the worlds of adults and children: runaways, delinquents and orphans. Several themes in the literature are identified, based on the conflicting ideas of ‘body/mind’, ‘victim/threat’, ‘needs/rights’. It is noted that researchers are using more imaginative ways of reaching the lived experience of children than the family or institutional framework, and that an increasing link is drawn between historical and modern concerns such as child abuse and the care of ‘at risk’ children.     

Vedic Language and Vaiṣṇava Theology:Madhva’s Use of Nirukta in his Ṛgbhāṣya

This article explores the way in which Madhva (1238–1317), the founder of the Dvaita Vedānta system of Hindu thought, reformulates the traditional exegetic practice of nirukta or “word derivation” to validate his pluralistic, hierarchical, and Vaiṣṇava reading of the Ṛgvedic hymns. Madhva’s Ṛgbhāṣya (RB) is conspicuous for its heavy reliance on and unique deployment of this exegetical tactic to validate several key features of his distinctive theology. These features include his belief in Viṣṇu’s unique possession of all perfect attributes (guṇaparipūrṇatva) and His related conveyability by all Vedic words (sarvaśabdavācyatva). Such an understanding of Vedic language invokes the basic nirukta presupposition that words are eternally affiliated with the meanings they convey. But it is also based onMadhva’s access to a lexicon entitled Vyāsa’s Nirukti with which his critics and perhaps even his commentators seem to be unfamiliar.While the precise status of this text is the subject of ongoing debate, Madhva’s possession of special insight into the sacred canon is established in part by his unique claim to be an avatāra of the wind god Vāyu and a direct disciple of Viṣṇu Himself in the form of Vyāsa₁. Thus, Madhva’s use of nirukta invokes his personal charisma to challenge not only conventional understandings of the hymns but traditional exegetic norms. Madhva’s provision of an alternative tradition of nirukta provoked sectarian debate throughout the Vijayanagara period over the extent to which one could innovate in established practices of reading the Veda. Articulating the Veda’s precise authority was a key feature of Brahmin debates during this period and reflects both the empire’s concern with promoting a shared religious ideology and the competition among rival Brahman sects for imperial patronage that this concern elicited. By looking at how two of Madhva’s most important commentators (the 14^th-century Jayatīrtha and the 17^th-century Rāghavendra) sought to defend his niruktis, this article will explore how notions of normative nirukta were articulated in response to Madhva’s deviations. At the same time, however, examining Madhva’s commentators’ defense of his niruktis also demonstrates the extent to which Madhva actually adhered to selected exegetic norms. This reveals that discomfort with Madhva’s particular methods for deriving words stemmed, in part, from a more general ambivalence towards this exegetical tactic whose inherent open-endedness threatened to undermine the fixity of the canon’s very substance: its language. Vyāsa’s Nirukti is one of several ”unknown sources” cited in Madhva’s commentaries whose exact status continues to be debated. Some scholars (e.g. Rao, Sharma, Siauve) maintain that these texts are part of a now lost Pāṅcarātra tradition that Madhva is attempting to preserve. This may be true for many of these citations. However, in addition to claiming to be both an avatāra of Vāyu and Viṣṇu-as-Vyāsa’s student, Madhva states in several places (e.g., VTN 42, RB 162) that the canon has suffered loss during transmission and that only Viṣṇu can reveal it in its entirety. Thus, it is possible that Madhva intends texts like Vyāsa’s Nirukti to be viewed as part of an ongoing and corrective revelation, a notion that is compatible with many Vaiṣṇava traditions (Halbfass, 1991: 4).     

Policing Outlawed Desire: ‘Homocriminality’ in Beat Spaces in Australia

Drawing on interview data of gay men who have had their behavior in public spaces scrutinised by agents of the law for signs deviance, this article explores the historical characteristics of police animosity towards such conduct in Australia. This entails examining encounters between police and gay men who pursue desire in ‘beat’ (or ‘cottage’ to the use the UK term) spaces. Exploring why these outlaw gay male subjects are so abject and troubling to the law, the discussion documents how law’s desire to regulate gay men plays out in the masquerade of ‘plain-clothes’ agent provocateur operations where police entrap gay men by mimicking gay bodily appearances, gestures and mannerisms. This article also examines how police regulation of gay desire functions as a form of violence that delimits expressions of same sex desire in public spaces. A key theme that underpins the analyses in this paper is that the policing of desire in ‘beat’ spaces helps produce qualities of illicitness and dangerousness and that this, in turn, fuels the circuit of desire at play between gay men and agents of the law.

Interrupting the Myth of the <Emphasis Type="Italic">Partage</Emphasis>: Reflections on Sovereignty and Sacrifice in the work of Nancy,Agamben and Derrida

Agamben traces the bio-political essence of modern politics to the non-sacrificial killing of Homo Sacer in Roman law. Nancy, on the other hand, links the history of Western politics to the fundamental logic of sacrifice in Western metaphysics. He nevertheless contemplates the possibility that Western societies may finally have arrived at the threshold of a non-sacrificial existence. Derrida seeks to resist the sacrificial logic of Western metaphysics and politics, but nevertheless appears to accept it as an irreducible fact of human co-existence. Unlike Nancy, he envisages no actual or actualised beyond beyond the realm of sacrificial metaphysics and politics. He thus can be said to interrupt Nancy’s ‘myth’ of a non-sacrificial partage. This article compares these three philosophical stances in the hope of throwing more light on the role of sacrifice in the law and politics of our time. Professor of Law, Rand Afrikaans University. Conversations with Ann van Sevenant, Carol Clarkson, Louise du Toit, Peter Fitzpatrick, Costas Douzinas and Adam Thurschwell gave impetus to many of the themes developed in this article. Concomitant shortcomings and inaccuracies, as always, are mine.