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Principles of Criminal Legal Procedure as Embodiment of Moral bases of Criminal-procedural Activity


Nina S. Manova, Marina A. Baranova, Galina I. Sedova, Anton Ye. Fediunin and Dmitri S. Ustinov
Abstract

The article studies the issue of correlation between the principles of the Russian criminal procedure and the moral principles of implementing the criminal-procedural activity. Viewing the principles as fundamental ideas, basic provisions, based on objective regularities, the authors conclude that they should be filled with deep moral content. Assuming that the connecting link between morals and law is justice, the authors research this category with regard to implementing the Russian criminal legal procedure and conclude that, despite the formally definite norm of the criminal-procedural law concerning the sentence justice as compliance between the imposed penalty, the crime gravity and the personality of the accused, the doctrine and practice of criminal legal procedure expand this literal understanding of justice up to implying the necessity to ascertain the truth in a case. The article also investigates the issues of moral dilemmas arising from the principle of free estimation of evidences, based on the consciousness of a procedure participant. The authors research the social phenomenon of “systemic conscience” established in the Russian criminal legal procedure, which largely determines the so called accusatory bias in the Russian judges‟ activity. The article is of interest for the researchers of the modern criminal legal procedure issues, as well as for the broad public.

Volume 12 | 07-Special Issue

Pages: 47-58

DOI: 10.5373/JARDCS/V12SP7/20202082