When the court hears a case, the defendant has the opportunity to make a final statement. If he makes a good statement in his final statement, the outcome of the case will be changed, and it may change from losing to winning.
1. What did the defendant say in his final statement?
The right to make a final statement is an important procedural right enjoyed by criminal defendants in court trials. Its theoretical basis mainly lies in the legislation's special attention to the vulnerable status of criminal defendants and the embodiment of the speech principle. The setting up of the final statement procedure helps the judge better discover the truth of the case, demonstrates respect for the defendant's personality, and also has a special educational function for the public. In nature, the final statement is mainly a manifestation of the right to defend, and it is also a kind of emotional catharsis.
2. The right to make a final statement - the theoretical basis of the defendant’s right to make a final statement
In the process of criminal trials, the normal operation of the litigation mechanism is inseparable from the relative checks and balances between the prosecution and the defense. , this should be even more true today when our country's criminal prosecution mechanism is undergoing transformation. Because the relative balance of prosecution and defense forces is the prerequisite for confrontation. However, what makes everyone realize the most is that there is a serious innate asymmetry in the ability of the prosecutor and the defense to participate in the litigation on behalf of the state. Criminal proceedings are vividly described as a war waged by the prosecutor on behalf of a powerful state against a weak defendant. The prosecutor has the coercive power of the state and can take various coercive measures, but the defendant seems to be only the object of coercion. Therefore, in legislation, all countries have to adopt strategies to balance the litigation status of the prosecution and defense. One of the most important strategies is to grant the defendant a series of special procedural guarantees or privileges so that his ability and status to participate in litigation will gradually approach or To catch up with his prosecutor's "opponent", so that the prosecution and defense can form a confrontation situation. The posture of the prosecution and defense. The privileges granted to the defendant can be divided into two categories: substantive rights and procedural rights. The former is such as the presumption of innocence and the presumption of innocence principle, and the latter is such as the right of silence granted to the defendant by some countries. It can be said that the defendant's right to make a final statement in the trial is also a procedural manifestation of this privilege. This can also be verified from the comparison with civil litigation: the two creatures in civil litigation are inherently equal, and it is destined that the civil defendant cannot enjoy the special rights of the final statement.
In addition, the defendant’s exercise of the right to make a final statement must be in court as the only form of oral statement, and any written or other form cannot replace the oral statement. Therefore, the right to make the final statement is also considered to be a manifestation of the principle of ex officio. The so-called speech principle means that the court must adopt the form of verbal statements when hearing cases, that is, oral form. Replacing secret and indirect written hearings with open and direct oral hearings is a major development of the litigation system towards modern civilization. Unless otherwise provided by law, any evidentiary material without oral investigation by the court shall not be used as the basis for judgment. Therefore, the submission of any written materials such as a written statement of defense cannot be a reason to deprive or limit the defendant’s right to make a final statement. It can be seen that the speech principle, one of the principles of modern trial, is also the theoretical basis of the defendant's right to make a final statement.
3 The right to make a final statement - function - the right to make a final statement in the trial
First of all, as an integral part of the trial process, the defendant's final statement helps the judge discover the truth of the case . In a specific criminal case, the defendant is often the person who knows the facts of the case best, so his statement is of great value to the trial of the case. The defendant's final statement can often express the defendant's subjective personality characteristics in the most concentrated and obvious way. Through court investigations and court debates, the defendant's final statement often contains new content compared with his previous statements. Therefore, the defendant's final statement has important reference value for the judge to make a correct judgment. If new evidence or other new circumstances are discovered in the defendant's final statement, the judge should take further steps rather than adjourn the hearing. The Supreme People's Court stipulated this in its judicial interpretation: "If the defendant puts forward new facts and evidence in his final statement, and the collegial panel believes that it may affect the correct judgment, the court investigation shall be resumed; if the defendant puts forward new reasons for defense, The collegial panel believes it is necessary to resume court debate."
Secondly, the final statement procedure can demonstrate respect for the defendant’s personal dignity. If the above link is based on the consideration of accurately punishing crimes, then it can be said that the reason here is for the consideration of protecting the human rights of the defendant.
With the continuous advancement of the rule of law, people are paying more and more attention to procedures. The past view that procedural law is a subsidiary of substantive law is no longer the mainstream view in academic circles and even in practice. People realize that programs have their own intrinsic value, and this value is diversified. Among them, the value of procedures that can reflect the personal dignity of the parties has attracted enough attention. "The procedural guarantee system stipulated in the Procedural Law emphasizes the personal dignity of the parties and the subject status of legal relations, embodies the concepts of fairness, democracy, and the rule of law, and gives litigation the image of a rational activity." Regardless of whether the defendant's final statement has a substantial impact on the final verdict, the final statement procedure can still allow the defendant to release some long-repressed emotions. Although the defendant's dominant position has been established, no one can deny that the defendant is in an embarrassing situation during criminal proceedings, which will inevitably have a certain negative impact on his psychology. Therefore, it is not a bad idea to build a platform for the defendant to release his emotions. Of course, the defendant is not unlimited in his final statement. All words are still subject to certain restrictions, which will be discussed below.
Thirdly, the defendant’s final statement also has a certain educational function, that is, preaching the law to the public in the form of individual cases and admonishing the public not to violate the law. Originally, the educational function should be said to be the function of the entire court trial and even the entire criminal procedure. However, the defendant's final statement often has a stronger, more directly educational tone. The defendant will start from his own personal experience and show his inner feelings to people with rich emotions, which has the nature of a "parting message". Some statements may not be relevant to the finding of the facts of the case and so may not have the opportunity to be made in other proceedings. The legislation of various countries generally restricts the defendant's final statement to "relevant to the case" or "not off-topic." Although such statements have nothing to do with the determination of the facts of the case, it should be said that they are still "relevant to the case" and are also "parting." "Gift message" in nature. Although such speeches have nothing to do with fact-finding, they should be characterized as "related to the case" and "on the subject." In addition, these statements are relevant to the guilty plea issues that will be considered at sentencing. The final statement may leave a deeper impression on the public than other court proceedings, reflecting the function of exhortation and education. Of course, the judge cannot guide the defendant's final statement in this direction just because of this. After all, the final statement is the defendant's right, and it also bears the function of reflecting the defendant's personal dignity.
Final statement - the nature of the trial. From the most essential point of view, it should be said that the defendant's final statement falls within the scope of the right of defense. The so-called right of defense refers to the right granted by law to criminal suspects and defendants to defend and refute the content of the accusation in order to safeguard their legitimate rights and interests. In short, it is the right to defend against the accusation. It is generally believed that the right of defense has three characteristics: exclusiveness, defensiveness and absoluteness. The right of last resort also has the characteristics of these three aspects. The exclusivity of the right to make a final statement means that it is a right exclusive to the criminal defendant. Even if a lawyer speaks on his behalf, it cannot restrict the defendant from still making a final statement. For example, Section 258(2) and (3) of the German Criminal Procedure Code provides that "(2) The defendant shall make a final statement. (iii) Even if the defender has spoken on behalf of the defendant, the defendant shall still be asked whether has made a statement in his defence". The right of last argument is even more pronounced when it comes to defense. The original intention of its legislation is to provide an additional line of defense for the defendant in order to balance the litigation capabilities of the prosecution and defense, with the defendant acting as the last line of defense. The absolute nature of the right to make a final statement should be reflected in the fact that as long as a citizen is subject to criminal investigation and criminal trial, regardless of the nature and severity of the crime, he should enjoy the right to make a final statement. We cannot limit the defendant's right to make a final statement on the grounds that the crime is minor and that it is not necessary for the defendant to make a final statement. For example, Article 523 of Italy's Code of Criminal Procedure stipulates that "…5, in any case, if the defendant and the defender request to make a final statement" states that they should be allowed to do so, otherwise the action has no effect."
The right to defense is a basic right of the defendant, which runs throughout the entire litigation process and has extremely rich connotations.
Compared with the general right of defense, the right of final statement has unique characteristics: first, the subject of the final statement is only the defendant, which is irreplaceable and cannot be exercised on behalf of the defendant. This is obviously different from other rights of defense; second, in In the final statement, there is no direct confrontation between the prosecution and defense as in other defense rights. At this stage, only the defendant makes a statement, and there is no prosecution or defense, and his opinions can be fully expressed.
In addition, the right of final statement is not entirely a right of defense. The right to make a final statement has the function of demonstrating the defendant's sense of dignity and releasing the defendant's inner emotions. The right of defense has a premise, that is, it must first be embodied in confrontation. In some cases, the defendant's final statement is not confrontational, but is just a display of lyrical nature, and the right to make a final statement is reflected as a right to vent emotions. This nature of the right to make a final statement is also determined by the defendant's special status in the national public prosecutor's office, which means that the defendant is subject to greater psychological pressure than anyone else in criminal proceedings. Of course, the defendant's emotional release is not boundless and should be related to the case.