HISTORICAL LEGAL ANALYSIS OF THE DEATH PENALTY AS A TYPE OF CRIMINAL PUNISHMENT IN RUSSIA

As we know, the death penalty is not applied in all countries, but all over the world there are different views on this type of criminal punishment. In Russian society, during the course of historical development, there is also a discussion about the death penalty. Many people argue about its expediency, so in this article we will analyze the death penalty and its effectiveness at various stages of Russia's development. The relevance of this question in the fact that at the moment the death penalty is not applied in Russia, and in previous times this type of punishment was quite common. The study of the evolution of the death penalty in the Russian state will allow us to understand its effectiveness in preventing crime.

The death penalty in Russia originates in Ancient Rus. During this period of time, this type of punishment was applied to robbers for murder [1]. There were no methods of the death penalty fixed at the legislative level at that time, people themselves came up with various forms of implementing the death penalty [7].

In the XIV-XVII centuries, the death penalty was provided for theft, treason, arson, and religious crimes. All persons were subject to the death penalty, the only thing in relation to pregnant women was the death penalty was postponed until the birth of the child [2]. This type of punishment was implemented through hanging or cutting off parts of the body.

In the 18th century, the number of crimes for which it was possible to impose the death penalty reached its maximum. The death penalty could be imposed for murder, treason and corruption. In this period of time, persons under the age of 17 were exempted from the death penalty.

In the XIX - early XX century, there were changes in the methods of implementing the death penalty, now they began to use only execution and hanging. This type of punishment was commonly used for war crimes or terrorist activities.

In the Criminal Code of the USSR of 1926, the death penalty was provided for in Article 22 and it was applied to those who committed the most serious crimes against the Soviet regime and the Soviet system. But it is important to note that certain categories of the population were protected by law, to which the death penalty could not be applied. It referred to persons under the age of eighteen at the time of the commission of the crime, and women who are in a state of pregnancy [3]. If we turn to statistics, then the number of those sentenced to death during this period did not exceed 0.1% of the total number of convicts. [4]. It is also important to note that during this period the death penalty could be applied extrajudicially [5].

In the 1930s, the number of articles for which the death penalty was provided was increased. These were crimes mainly in the military sphere. In 1935, a decision was made to apply the death penalty to minors. Since that time, it could be applied to persons over the age of twelve for theft, violence, murder or attempted murder, as well as causing harm to health. Thus, the circle of persons to whom the death penalty could be applied expanded.

In 1947, the Decree of the Presidium of the Armed Forces "On the abolition of the death penalty" was issued and this punishment was recognized as not applicable in peacetime, but it could be assigned to spies and traitors to the Motherland. Since 1954, the death penalty could also be applied to murderers. But since the 1960s, the state has taken a course to increase the use of this type of punishment. Thus, the list of crimes for which the death penalty was imposed has again expanded. And since the late 1980s, the USSR has taken the path of reducing the use of the death penalty.

After the destruction of the USSR, the Constitution was adopted, which stipulates that the death penalty can be established as an exceptional punishment for especially grave crimes against life [8]. From 1992 to 1996, the death penalty was also prosecuted in Russia, during which time 131 people were executed. On November 19, 2009, the Russian Constitutional Court ruled, as no courts in Russia can pass death sentences.

Currently, the Criminal Code fixes the death penalty in article 59 for especially death, cases that encroach on life, such as genocide, victims of aggravating passions, encroachment on the life of a statesman or public figure, encroachment on the life of a person, administration of justice or preliminary investigation, infectious organ diseases [6]. This article is not being implemented due to the presence of a moratorium on the use of the death penalty in Russia.

Comparing the statistics, we can conclude that in the Soviet period, crime was many times less than in modern Russia, in particular, the number of serious and especially serious crimes increased, the reason for this was due to more severe punishments in the USSR, and the softening of the punishment system in modern Russia pushed many criminals to commit such crimes for which the death penalty could have been applied during the Soviet period.

Thus, the death penalty in Russia has a long history of its existence, the analysis of which shows the dynamics of the conditions for the implementation of this type of criminal punishment, as well as an ambiguous attitude towards the need for its application.

References​:

1. Criminal law of Russia. General part / ed. V. N. Kudryavtseva, V. V. Luneeva, A. V. Naumova. - 2nd ed., revised. and additional - M.: Jurist, 2006. - S. 388. - 540 p.
2. Criminal law course. Volume 2. General part. The doctrine of punishment / ed. N. F. Kuznetsova, I. M. Tyazhkova. - M., Zertsalo, 2002.
3. CRIMINAL CODE R.S.F.S.R. EDITIONS OF 1926 (as amended and supplemented by the Decrees of the Central Executive Committee of the USSR dated February 19, 1926 - СЗ, 1926, No. 9, Art. 71; dated March 05, 1926 - СЗ, 1926, No. 15, Art. 106)
4. Criminal law of Russia. General part / ed. F. R. Sundurova, I. A. Tarkhanova. - 3rd ed., revised. and additional - M.: Statut, 2009. - S. 516. - 751 p.
5. Criminal law of Russia. Parts General and Special / M. P. Zhuravlev [and others]; ed. A. I. Raroga. - 6th ed., revised. and additional - M .: TK Velby, Prospekt, 2008. - S. 204. - 704 p.
6. Criminal Code of the Russian Federation [Text]: dated 06/13/1996 No. 63-FZ (as amended on 04/07/2020) // Collection of Legislation of the Russian Federation. - 06/17/1996.
7. Georgievsky Eduard Viktorovich Blood feud and the death penalty among the Eastern Slavs // Siberian Legal Bulletin. 2005. No. 1. URL: https://cyberleninka.ru/article/n/krovnaya-mest-i-smertnaya-kazn-u-vostochnyh-slavyan (Date of access: 06/03/2023).
8. The Constitution of the Russian Federation [Electronic resource]: adopted by popular vote on December 12, 1993. : (taking into account the amendments made by the Laws of the Russian Federation on amendments to the Constitution of the Russian Federation of December 30, 2008 N 6-FKZ, of December 30, 2008 N 7-FKZ, of February 5, 2014 N 2-FKZ, of July 21, 2014 N 11- FKZ December 30, 2008 No. 6-FKZ and No. 8 - FKZ) // SPS "Consultant Plus".