In criminal proceedings, anyone who knows the circumstances of the case is required to have the obligation to testify. At this time, witnesses are generally called witnesses, and their testimony is testimony. In practice, the scope of witnesses is limited, so who can be a witness? Bian Xiao has compiled relevant information and will answer this question for you immediately.
1. Who can be a witness?
According to the criminal procedure law, anyone who knows the circumstances of the case has the obligation to testify. A person who is physically and mentally defective or young, can't distinguish right from wrong and can't express correctly, can't be a witness.
(a) physical and mental defects or young, and this kind of defects or young to the point where you can't distinguish right from wrong and can't express correctly, you should exclude the qualification of a witness, and whether it reaches the point where you can't distinguish right from wrong and can't express correctly can't be determined by personal subjective judgment, but must be confirmed by experts.
Witnesses must have the ability to testify, and the method of presumption should be adopted, that is, everyone should be presumed to have the ability to testify. If you want to deny a person's ability to testify, you can check or identify him if necessary.
(two) the witness can only be a natural person, and the certification materials issued by the unit or organization can only appear in the form of documentary evidence, not in the form of witness testimony.
(three) the witness testimony must adhere to the principle of individualization, that is, one person and one certificate, and the materials formed in the form of seminars cannot be used as witness testimony.
(4) The identity of the witness is determined by its perception of the case objectively forming a corresponding evidence relationship with the problems of the case, so the witness is irreplaceable and cannot be appointed or replaced at will by the case handlers.
Witnesses must personally state or write their testimony, and generally cannot entrust others to act as agents except the case-handling personnel who make transcripts.
This irreplaceability also determines the priority of witness testimony, that is, after the witness identity is formed in the lawsuit, it will not be able to serve as an investigator, prosecutor, judge, expert witness and translator in the lawsuit.
(5) A witness refers to a person other than the party who knows the case and makes a statement to the public security and judicial organs, so it is wrong to say that "everyone who knows the case is a witness".
(6) A witness refers to a person who, according to the provisions of the Criminal Procedure Law, witnesses certain legal acts in the proceedings at the request of the case-handling personnel.
For example, witnesses to the legality of legal procedures for investigation, search and seizure of material evidence and written evidence are not witnesses, because these acts of proof are not directed at the facts of the case.
Article 72 of the Civil Procedure Law
All units and individuals who know the case have the obligation to testify in court. The person in charge of the relevant unit shall support the witness to testify. People who cannot express their meaning correctly cannot testify.
Second, how should the witness testify?
(1) With regard to rights, witnesses enjoy the following rights:
1. Have the right to testify in their own language and written language. If the witness is not familiar with the local language, he has the right to ask the court to provide him with an interpreter.
2. Have the right to request to read, inquire, supplement and correct their own testimony transcripts.
3. Have the right to economic compensation or remuneration.
4. Have the right to request the people's court to protect their personal and property safety.
5, enjoy the right to refuse to testify under special circumstances, also known as the right to refuse to testify or privilege to testify, that is, when witnesses have the obligation to testify in court, the law gives some witnesses the special right to be exempted from the obligation to testify because of special circumstances.
(2) Obligations of the witness:
1, notify the required obligation to appear in court.
2. The obligation to truthfully testify and answer questions includes two aspects: first, witnesses must truthfully provide testimony, and second, they must not conceal the facts.
3. Have the obligation to keep state secrets.
In criminal cases, besides victims and criminal suspects, witnesses are the most common. Witnesses also have requirements, and witnesses also have requirements to testify. Bian Xiao has already introduced the question "Who can be a witness". You can consult a lawyer for more relevant knowledge.