When Due Process Is of No Consequence: Moral Mandates and Presumed Defendant Guilt or Innocence

Most current theories of justice are focused on how social identity, instrumental concerns, or both shape how people decide whether something is fair or unfair. A neglected consideration is that people may also be concerned with justice because they strive to be authentic moral beings by acting on the basis of values closely tied to their personal identity. We posited that self-expressive moral positions or stands (moral mandates) are important determinants of how people reason about fairness. Supporting this notion, we found that (a) people see some trial outcomes in morally mandated terms, e.g., that the guilty must be convicted and punished, and the innocent must not; (b) convicting a defendant believed to be innocent or acquitting a defendant believed to be guilty were seen as unfair, regardless of whether the verdict was achieved by a fair or unfair investigation and trial (Study 1); and (c) a guilty defendant's death was seen as equally fair, and an innocent defendant's death was equally unfair, if it was achieved by a trial that led to the death penalty or by vigilantism (Study 2). Procedural propriety only mattered when defendant guilt was ambiguous.     

Assisting the Factually Innocent: The Contradictions and Compatibility of Innocence Projects and the Criminal Cases Review Commission

The Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) was the first publiclyfunded body created to investigate claims of wrongful conviction,with the power to refer cases to the Court of Appeal. In othercountries, such as Australia, Canada and the United States,many regard the CCRC as the optimal solution to wrongful convictionand, for years, Innocence Projects in these countries have calledfor the establishment of a CCRC-style body in their own jurisdictions.However, it is now Innocence Projects which are being introducedin England and Wales to try to assist applicants who are innocentbut convicted. This article reviews why the CCRC was created,discusses the role of factual innocence within this body andwithin the criminal justice system generally and explores whyInnocence Projects are being created in England and Wales, despitethe presence of the CCRC. It explains how these different organizationsmay work together to assist factually innocent people who havebeen wrongly convicted, and the role Innocence Projects mayplay generally in criminal justice reform and legal education.     

Sentencing Commissions as Centers for Policy Analysis and Research: Illustrations from the Budget Process

Sentencing commissions have become centers for policy analysis and research, studying the problems of prison crowding and resource limits (Reitz 1997). However, more information is needed regarding how commissions perform this function. This paper focuses on the role of sentencing commissions as centers of policy analysis during state budget processes. Also discussed is an important stage for policy research, the evaluation of alternative policies by means of computer simulation, a modeling tool frequently employed by sentencing commissions. Following a discussion of computer simulation principles, several prominent simulation models used by sentencing commissions are reviewed. Finally, the activities of Virginia's sentencing commission demonstrate how commissions serve as policy research centers.     

受压迫股东的救济路径研究:股东受信义务与法定压迫救济制度

股东保护机制是公司法的核心问题之一.由于公司所有权结构的特点,股东之间的压迫问题已成为公司管理中的重要考量.我国公司法第20条原则性地提出了对股东不得滥用权利的要求.基于该原则建立具体的股东压迫救济制度已成为公司法研究和修订中非常重要的议题,也将对提升我国的营商环境大有帮助.股东受信义务和法定压迫救济制度是国际上较为常见的两大受压迫股东的救济途径.通过比较这两大救济制度的理论与实践,斟酌利弊,深入研究两大制度间的关系及分析域外司法实践的判例,可以为我国建立受压迫股东救济制度提供可行的参考路径.     

The Presumption of Innocence and its Role in the Criminal Process

Many international instruments proclaim that those who face criminal prosecution ought to be afforded a ‘presumption of innocence’, and the importance and central role of this presumption is recognized by legal systems throughout the world. There is, however, little agreement about its meaning and extent of application. This article considers the purposes of legal presumptions in general and explores various, sometimes contradictory, conceptions of this most famous one. It is equated by many scholars to the requirement that the prosecution prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. As such, it is merely a rule of evidence (albeit an important one), with no application pre- or post-trial. The article advocates adoption of a broader, normative approach, namely that the presumption reflects the relationship which ought to exist between citizen and State when a citizen is suspected of breaching the criminal law. As such, it should be promoted as a practical attitude to be adopted by the key protagonists in the justice system, for the duration of the criminal process.     

论司法生态平衡与诉讼价值最大化

司法生态从语义上涵括了法律实证活动中的参与要素,从系统的角度看,要使其发挥最佳功能和效益,必须保持常态平衡。司法活动的根本目的在于体现司法公正,实现司法正义,这些目的的实现必须通过具体的诉讼过程,因此,实体与程序、成本与效益、法典与政策等对应与平衡关系就成为这个过程的关键,并由此考量诉讼价值和法治理念。     

正当程序:滥用程序权的判断标准

在缺乏有关程序的法律依据时,行政机关对程序拥有裁量权。行政机关对程序的裁量违反正当程序原则的,构成滥用职权。正当程序原则的合法地位源自《行政诉讼法》所规定的行政行为不得滥用职权。法院审查行政行为是否存在滥用职权的判断标准之一,是正当程序原则。上述规则的确立,经历了学说借鉴、政策回应、司法实践和法律确认的发展过程。     

法槌下的正当程序

目前行政法学界对于行政程序的研究,多侧重于理论层面的讨论和构建,走的是一条以立法为导向的研究范式;同时对域外经验的过分关注,使学者们忽视了本土行政法实践中所发生的诸多变革。为此,本文将对行政程序研究的关注点放在我国的司法实践上,通过对个案的研读,来发掘实践中法官对于正当程序的态度以及正当程序在法官判决中的演变;通过对法官判决的制度性效应的观察,思考法官对正当程序在我国的传播和发展中的推动作用。     

网上仲裁程序与正当程序

正当程序是各国仲裁程序的基本原则,其最基本的要求是仲裁庭应给予当事人适当的通知和行使申辩权的机会。在网上仲裁程序中,仲裁庭通过互联网向当事人送达仲裁文书和进行审理。虽然网上送达和网上审理与传统的送达方式和审理方式存在着一定的差异,但二者在功能和作用上是相同的,能够满足正当程序的基本要求。     

正当法律程序:扼制腐败的屏障

正当法律程序最初源于"自己不做自己的法官"和"对他人做出不利行为要事先告知、说明理由和听取申辩"的"自然正义"原则,之后其内涵扩展到包括公开、公正、公平和参与等现代民主程序原则。在中国,由于民主、法治发展滞后,公权力运作领域一直没有建立起完善的正当法律程序机制,有些领域甚至正当法律程序完全缺位,以至为腐败滋生、蔓延提供了便利条件。中国是共产党执政的社会主义国家,是从前社会主义计划经济向后社会主义市场经济过渡的转型国家。中国的反腐主要不是靠权力制约权力,而主要是靠权利制约权力,靠正当法律程序制约权力。中国必须走出一条有自己特色的反腐之路。     

Packer in Context: Formalism and Fairness in the Due Process Model

Herbert Packer's The Limits of the Criminal Sanction (1968) has spawned decades of commentary. This essay argues that Packer's two‐model conceptualization of the criminal process is best understood within his professional milieu of doctrinal legal scholarship and the political context of the Warren Court revolution. Within this context, the essay suggests a distinction between two due process visions: formalism and fairness. This distinction is useful for illuminating debates and decisions on criminal procedure matters in the Supreme Court such as Terry v. Ohio (1968) and Apprendi v. New Jersey (2000) . I conclude by encouraging sensitivity to legal and historical context in future commentary on Packer's framework.     

刑事正当程序宪法化研究

被宪法确认和采纳后的正当程序原则,对刑事程序的正当化影响深远,形成了庞大的宪法刑事程序法体系,会对刑事程序中的公民权利保障发挥重要作用.我国刑事正当程序宪法化可采取以宪法修正案的形式明确"正当程序"原则,使刑事被追诉人程序权利宪法化,建立宪法权利救济机制,真正保障公民刑事正当程序权利.     

死刑的程序之维

死刑正当程序的必要性在于防止错杀与滥杀。死刑的正当程序既要满足普通司法规则,又是一种特殊、烦琐与代价高昂的程序。中国现行的死刑司法,未能充分满足普通司法规则,缺乏正当程序所应有的特殊性,且过于简化而代价低廉,因而不符合正当程序的要求。为了有效地防止错杀与滥杀,最大限度地减少死刑的适用,中国的死刑司法应该从正当程序的要求出发,尽快实现程序的正当化。