in criminal proceedings, defenders, criminal suspects and defendants * * * * share the defense function. Defenders should take the facts as the basis, take the law as the criterion, actively confront the accusation function undertaken by the accuser, and put forward materials and opinions to prove the innocence of the criminal suspect and defendant or to reduce or exempt criminal responsibility, so as to urge the judge to listen to the opinions of both parties to the case and make a neutral and fair judgment on this basis. In China, defenders include lawyers; Guardians, relatives and friends of criminal suspects and defendants; People's organizations or persons recommended by the unit where the criminal suspect or defendant works. In the process of defense, the defender shall defend according to his own wishes, regardless of the opinions of the public prosecutor or the will of the criminal suspect or defendant; Can't be a "second public prosecutor", nor a defender of a criminal suspect or defendant. Defenders have independent litigation status and independently perform their duties of safeguarding the legitimate rights and interests of criminal suspects and defendants. The litigation status of defenders should be equal to that of prosecutors who appear in court for public prosecution, and they should obey the command of court judges and perform their respective litigation functions according to law. No organ, group or individual may illegally interfere.
Legal basis
Article 16 of the Decision of the National People's Congress on Amending the Criminal Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China is amended as: "Article 26 is changed to Article 32. Article 26 is renumbered as Article 32 and amended as follows: "A criminal suspect or defendant may entrust one or two persons as defenders in addition to exercising the right of defense by himself. In addition to exercising the right of defense, criminal suspects and defendants may entrust one or two persons as defenders. The following persons may be appointed as defenders: "(1) lawyers;" (2) A person recommended by a people's organization or the unit where the criminal suspect or defendant works; "(3) Guardians, relatives and friends of criminal suspects and defendants." A person who is executing a penalty or who is deprived or restricted of personal freedom according to law may not act as a defender. "