Zhou Qiang, President of the Supreme People's Court pointed out in the explanation of the draft that at present, China is in a special period of economic transition and social transformation, with high incidence of criminal offences. It is an urgent need for judicial practice to further promote the diversion of criminal cases and optimize the allocation of judicial resources. Zhou Qiang said, the establishment of a criminal case quick adjudication procedure is conducive to timely punishing crimes, maintaining social order, promoting social harmony and stability, optimizing the allocation of judicial resources, and solving the contradiction of too many cases in judicial practice. It is also conducive to implementing the criminal policy of combining leniency with severity, combining punishment with education, and educating and correcting criminals.
Zhou Qiang said that the large number and variety of cases in the above-mentioned areas are conducive to testing the effectiveness of the pilot work. The trial period is two years, counting from the effective date of the decision.
the National People's Congress Standing Committee (NPCSC) authorized the "two high schools" to carry out the pilot of quick adjudication, which initiated the "pilot legislation" in the judicial field. It is understood that in the past, the National People's Congress Standing Committee (NPCSC) authorized the State Council to carry out several pilot reforms that broke through the law, but it was the first time to authorize the "two highs".
Beijing Times reporter Sun Qian Sun Siya □ Pilot content
Applicable to the defendant's voluntary confession
The court shall not investigate and debate
According to the draft for comment, the pilot case of criminal case quick trial procedure is limited to clear facts and sufficient evidence, and the defendant voluntarily pleads guilty. There is no dispute about the applicable law. Theft and dangerous driving can be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of less than one year, but not to fixed-term imprisonment of less than one year.
theft and dangerous driving can be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than one year, criminal detention, public surveillance or a single fine.
regarding the simplification and refinement of relevant procedures, Zhou Qiang said that when applying the expedited procedure, it is suggested to inform the court that there is no limit on the trial time. The judge confirmed that the defendant pleaded guilty voluntarily in court, and there is no dispute about the applicable law. If he agrees to apply the expedited procedure, court investigation and court debate can be omitted, and the time limit for handling cases can be appropriately shortened, but the defendant's final statement must be heard.
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Reversing the phenomenon of "frequent long sentences"
the Supreme People's Court said that with the social transformation, minor criminal cases have increased rapidly, and the judicial organs "have more cases than people". "The contradiction is prominent. If the complexity is not divided, it will lead to a long time for handling minor criminal cases. Therefore, it is necessary to optimize the allocation of judicial resources and carry out speedy trials on a large number of minor criminal cases, so as to improve the litigation efficiency of such cases, punish criminals in time and solve the contradiction of too many cases. "
the contradiction of "more cases than people" is prominent.
according to the current decision, the speedy adjudication procedure will simplify the trial procedure, there will be no time limit for serving litigation documents before the trial, and there will be no need for court investigation and debate during the trial, and the time limit for handling cases by the judicial organs will be shortened accordingly, which will greatly improve the efficiency of handling such cases.
The implementation of the criminal case summary procedure can also ensure the fairness of sentencing. In the past, because the suspects and defendants in minor criminal cases generally took coercive measures such as detention and arrest, the defendants were held in custody for a long time, and the sentencing in some cases was often "as long as they were kept in custody", which not only failed to be punished in time, but also made it difficult to achieve fair sentencing. After the speedy trial procedure is implemented, even if the defendant is detained, he can be tried quickly, and the judicial organs will treat the defendant who voluntarily confessed leniently, so as to better realize the principle of "less crimes and lighter sentences" and better embody the principle of "crime and punishment are appropriate", which is the principle of "balanced and fair punishment". Reflect the spirit of penalty balance and justice.
The defendant can apply for hearing in private
Building a legal aid lawyer on duty system
Zhou Qiang said that the people's courts should fully respect and protect the defendant's right to hear cases in public. At the same time, if the defendant applies for a closed trial for legitimate reasons such as reputation protection and information security, and the public prosecutor and defender have no objection, the trial may be closed with the approval of the president of the people's court.
In addition, it is suggested to establish a legal aid lawyer system in courts and detention centers. When a criminal suspect or defendant applies for legal aid, he shall appoint a lawyer on duty for legal aid to ensure that he voluntarily pleads guilty and admits punishment, and fully understands the legal consequences of applying the expedited procedure. A criminal suspect or defendant who is subject to the summary procedure shall be released on bail pending trial and under residential surveillance if he meets the conditions for obtaining a guarantor pending trial.
> > Interpretation
Protecting the rights of criminal suspects in minor criminal cases
The Supreme Court said that some pilot measures have protected the rights of criminal suspects and defendants. For example, from the beginning of the investigation stage, non-custodial compulsory measures such as bail pending trial and residential surveillance can be taken against criminal suspects and defendants in minor criminal cases, which has changed the past practice of generally taking custodial measures such as detention and arrest. For another example, in sentencing, the judicial organs choose to apply the quick adjudication procedure to the defendants who voluntarily plead guilty, because they voluntarily plead guilty, return stolen goods, compensate for losses, and obtain the understanding of the injured party, and in principle, they are given a lighter punishment, which reflects a kind of "sentencing incentive" for those who voluntarily plead guilty and the spirit of safeguarding the legitimate rights and interests of the defendants. All these reflect the spirit of safeguarding the defendant's legitimate rights and interests.
At the same time, the litigation rights of criminal suspects and defendants have also been guaranteed. The decision gives the criminal suspect and the defendant a variety of litigation options: the defendant has the right to get a quick ruling, so he can choose a quick ruling procedure, an ordinary procedure or a summary procedure; In the choice of whether to open the trial, the defendant has the right to open the trial, and can also choose not to open the trial from the aspects of personal reputation and information security; In the choice of whether to appeal, the defendant can plead guilty and accept the sentence, not appeal after the judgment, while still retaining the right to appeal.
□ Three questions of the Supreme Court
1. Is the reform of the speedy adjudication procedure of criminal cases due to the abolition of the reeducation through labor system?
Supreme Court: The reform of the criminal case summary procedure is mainly due to the large increase of minor criminal cases, and the contradiction between the large number of cases in judicial organs and the small number of cases is prominent, not due to the abolition of the reeducation through labor system. Although there is a certain time overlap between the two, in fact, before the abolition of reeducation through labor, many places have tried to handle minor criminal cases quickly, such as Beijing, Shenzhen, Nanning and other places, and began to reform the mechanism of handling minor criminal cases quickly as early as a few years ago. Therefore, the trial of the speedy trial procedure is not a supporting measure to abolish reeducation through labor.
2. Will the cancellation of court investigation and court debate affect the rights of the defendant?
Supreme Court: It is a prerequisite for a case not to be investigated and debated by the court. That is, the facts are clear and the evidence is sufficient, and the defendant voluntarily pleads guilty and signs a written opinion agreeing with the sentencing proposal of the procuratorate. If these conditions cannot be met at the same time, the expedited procedure cannot be applied, and the case will be tried according to summary procedure or ordinary procedure.
The purpose of court investigation and debate is to find out the facts and evidence, and understand the defendant's opinions on the facts and evidence and the applicable law. However, the defendant voluntarily pleads guilty and has no objection to the application of laws such as sentencing suggestions, which is equivalent to giving up the right of defense automatically, and there is no need to set up court investigation and debate procedures. Although there is no court investigation and debate, the defendant also has the right to make a final statement, and the court generally gives a lighter punishment to cases in which the defendant has a good attitude of pleading guilty, which is actually beneficial to the defendant.
third, does it violate the principle of judicial openness to increase the reasons for hearing in camera?
Supreme Court: At present, judicial organs vigorously advocate and promote judicial openness and increase judicial transparency, but there are exceptions to public trials. According to the law, cases involving state secrets, personal privacy, commercial secrets, juvenile delinquency, etc. cannot be tried in public. In addition, the draft adds a closed trial, that is, if the defendant applies for a closed trial for reasons such as the protection of reputation rights and information security, after review by the people's procuratorate, if the defender has no objection, the trial can be closed.
public trial is a right, and the defendant has the right to accept or give up. The defendant's application for a closed trial must be justified, and the draft stipulates strict conditions for this, which must be approved by the president of the court and will not be abused. There are precedents in foreign countries, and many countries try minor criminal cases in writing, but in fact they just don't hear them in public.
□ Pilot experience
Building a "green channel" in four aspects of trial
According to the introduction of the Beijing Higher People's Court, since 21, Beijing courts have carried out rapid reform of handling minor criminal cases, and the proportion of cases applying summary procedures has reached 65%, and the average trial period has been reduced to 7 days, showing the characteristics of case settlement and service settlement. The average trial period is reduced to about 7 days, and the case shows the remarkable characteristics of high rate of appealing against interest, low appeal rate and low rate of remanding the case for retrial.
Comrade Yu, vice-president of Criminal Court No.1 of the Municipal High Court, said that a quick trial with a light sentence is not just about seeking quick results, but on the premise of fully protecting the defendant's litigation rights and the defense lawyers' performance of their duties according to law. During the trial, whether the defendant pleaded guilty or not should be "asked twice" with the judges when serving a copy of the indictment, to confirm whether the defendant pleaded guilty or not and agree to apply summary procedure. If the defendant has a defense lawyer, the work progress will be accelerated on the premise of ensuring the lawyer to exercise the right to read papers and meet. If the defense lawyer raises an objection or pleads not guilty, the judge will terminate the work procedure of quick adjudication in time.
In addition, the speedy adjudication is mainly reflected in the pace of work and the acceleration of the process outside the trial, and the trial procedure is still carried out in strict accordance with the law. "In particular, the examination and control of evidence," Comrade Yu Qiuyu stressed, "especially the determination of the defendant's guilt and the heavier punishment of the defendant, must meet the standard of proof that the evidence is true and sufficient."
Comrade Yu said that Beijing courts have also established a "green channel" for speedy trials. When the procuratorial organ initiates a public prosecution, it shall bring a written opinion on the summary procedure to be applied, and affix a special mark for quick handling on the indictment to remind the court. In the process of filing a case, the procuratorial organ is required to review and accept it on the same day and transfer it to the criminal court on the same day to minimize the time for transferring the case. In the trial process, the system of handling special matters shall be established, and a special person or collegial panel shall be appointed to try the case, and the verdict shall be pronounced in court in principle. In the trial, the court gave the defendant explanation and court education, which laid the foundation for the education and correction of the penalty execution organ. In the process of delivery and execution, the Beijing Higher People's Court demanded that minor criminal cases be tried as soon as possible, and the legal documents for delivery and execution should be delivered to the criminals for execution within five days at the latest after the judgment came into effect, so as to ensure enough time for education and correction.
At present, a three-person case-handling team of Beijing grass-roots courts can conclude more than 1, minor criminal cases a year. For more than 95% drunk driving cases, they can be handled within one month after being seized.