ST 30 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.
1. Preparation for a crime is the search, manufacture or adaptation by a person of means or instruments for committing a crime, the search for accomplices to a crime, conspiracy to commit a crime or other deliberate creation of conditions for the commission of a crime, if the crime was not completed due to reasons beyond the control of this person. circumstances.
2. Criminal liability arises for preparation only for grave and especially grave crimes.
3. An attempted crime is the intentional actions (inaction) of a person directly aimed at committing a crime, if the crime was not completed due to circumstances beyond the control of this person.
Essence of the question
The Russian Criminal Code has the concept of an “unfinished crime.” By it we mean a situation where the perpetrator did everything to commit an offense, but for reasons beyond his control, was ultimately unable to achieve the desired goal. Nevertheless, he must be punished for such actions. The circumstances of such actions and the consequences to which they could lead are precisely what Art. 30 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.
It includes 3 points that clearly describe the types of unfinished crimes. There are only two of them:
- cooking;
- an attempt to commit it.
In addition, in paragraph 2 of Art. 30 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation clarifies in which case criminal liability arises for such actions. After all, not every action can be classified into this category. During the trial, some of them are recognized as simply hooliganism, and this is already an independent violation that provides for a completely different punishment. This article concerns only those cases that can be attributed to the types of crimes listed above that have not reached their logical conclusion.
Conditions for the action
Art. 30 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation in the second part defines the conditions that are necessary for a suspect to be brought to justice. The question here concerns the qualification of the crime. It must have the status of grave or especially grave. This condition is mandatory.
In cases where a crime of average or minor gravity has been committed, such charges are not brought. Previously, in accordance with the Criminal Code of 1996, this was possible. Then the question was adjusted based on the social danger of the act committed. Now actions that pose a minor threat do not constitute preparation for a crime. First, the special danger and gravity of the act must be proven. That is, the court needs confirmation that the possible outcome of the event necessarily poses a real threat to society. Only after this can such actions be considered as a crime that could not be completed as a result of a random combination of circumstances.
Preparatory actions
Clause 1 of Art. 30 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation examines in detail what is considered to be “preparation for a crime.” This is a fairly broad concept that includes:
- The production, search or adaptation by a specific citizen of means or instruments with the help of which he planned to commit this crime. Some of his actions are in themselves an atrocity worthy of punishment. And sometimes they entail a whole series of offenses leading to even more serious consequences.
- Finding persons who should become accomplices of a future crime and conspiring with them to commit certain actions that will lead to the commission of a crime.
- Creation of certain conditions that have a very specific focus. That is, the offender does everything so that the crime he has planned can be committed.
The peculiarity of all these acts is that, for reasons beyond the direct control of the perpetrator, they never led to the commission of the planned crime.
What does attempted crime mean?
In legal practice, attempted crime refers to the commission of illegal actions by an attacker or his inaction, which did not lead to the implementation of the plan.
For example, attempted murder will be considered the execution of malicious intent, but as a result of the actions the victim remained alive.
Thus, the main feature of this act is that potentially dangerous consequences did not occur. Otherwise, the criminal will be held accountable for the type of crime he committed.
An attempted crime is characterized by a combination of the following features:
- the person has committed a criminal act;
- the criminal carried out what was planned in advance, that is, acted intentionally;
- the act constitutes a crime;
- all operations are aimed at a specific item or object;
- after the criminal committed the actions, no socially dangerous consequences occurred;
- failure to fulfill the criminal intent occurred due to reasons beyond the control of the attacker.
Thus, in contrast to preparation for a crime, an attempt is characterized precisely by the commission of illegal actions. But what distinguishes it from a completed act is not the onset of dangerous consequences.
Types and forms of attempted crime
There are two types of attempted crime: completed and unfinished.
The first is interpreted as the criminal performing all actions to implement his plan. For example, an attacker fired a shot but missed the victim.
An incomplete attempt is characterized by the implementation of not all intentional actions associated with the onset of dangerous consequences. For example, a killer came to the crime scene, laid out his guns and prepared to wait for the victim, but was unable to fire a shot because he was stopped.
In addition to the types of attempted crime, there are also forms. They explain why the attacker was unable to carry out his plans.
The first form is characterized by an attempt to commit a crime against an unsuitable object.
For example, an attacker decided to steal money from a safe, and the last one turned out to be empty.
The second type is characterized by an attack on an object or object with an unsuitable weapon.
For example, attempted murder with a faulty weapon.
Important!
If the criminal stopped in time and changed his mind about fulfilling his plans in real life, then his inaction cannot be qualified as an attempt to commit a crime.
If it was not possible to complete the crime because someone stopped the attacker, for example, law enforcement officers, then his actions constitute a crime.
Difference of concepts
An attempt to commit a crime on the basis of paragraph 3 of Article 30 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation is considered to be certain actions aimed at its commission, which were never completed for known reasons, independent of the person accused of them. This also includes the inaction of a citizen in a situation created by him, which should lead to serious negative consequences.
But preparation for a crime and attempted crime are two completely different concepts. Their difference is clear from the definition itself. In the first case, the offender carries out preparatory actions, that is, plans a crime and creates all the necessary conditions for it. He has not yet taken active action, but has already broken the law, doing everything to bring his evil intent to life. In the case of an attempt, it is meant that the offender has already begun the practical execution of his plans. In fact, these are already concrete actions that have a significant social danger than the preparatory process.
Second commentary to Art. 30 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation
1. Objective signs of preparation for a crime are indicated in Part 1 of Art. 30 CC. Finding means or instruments for committing a crime - any method of acquiring them (legal or illegal): purchase, exchange, theft, temporary borrowing, etc. “Searching” is a socially dangerous (and therefore punishable) action insofar as the attacker takes possession of objects that are necessary and sufficient to cause harm (as an instrument of a crime) or to commit a crime (as a means for this). The mere fact of taking possession of the necessary means or instrument for committing a crime cannot be regarded as preparation for a crime in isolation from the process that preceded it, in which other essential properties of his socially dangerous activity were reflected. For example, in a situation where a person picks up random objects from the ground (as opposed to a situation when he selects them...), it is hardly possible to see signs of finding a crime weapon as a form of preparation for its commission. The production of means or instruments for committing a crime is reasonably interpreted as their creation in any way (handicraft or industrial, legal or illegal, etc.). The adaptation of means or instruments for committing a crime means changing the quality of objects of the material world in order to give them the properties of instruments or means for committing a crime.
Finding accomplices is the process of involving other persons in the commission of a crime, inducing them to participate in the commission of a crime in one role or another. The legislator considers inducing other persons to commit a crime (or participate in it) not only from the position of the role of instigator to commit a crime (or its organizer), but also as an independent form of preparation for committing a crime in cases where the legal fact of complicity did not take place due to circumstances depending on the will of the attacker.
Conspiracy to commit a crime is an agreement to commit a crime, the existence of which is considered as an independent form of preparation for a crime. In this case, it does not matter who initiated the agreement: all its participants bear responsibility for preparing a crime.
2. The range of its signs is not limited. In Part 1 of Art. 30 of the Criminal Code this is reflected in the wording: “other intentional creation of conditions for the commission of a crime.” In addition to the already known (listed above) signs, preparation for a crime can be: developing a crime plan, preparing the crime scene, poisoning a dog or bribing a watchman, “neutralizing” a possible witness, eliminating other obstacles to committing a crime, studying the alarm system (including experiments on turning it off). The criterion for distinguishing preparation from the formation and detection of intent is the property of relevance to legally significant circumstances of a future crime. From these positions, the purchase of bags for carrying out stolen property, like a thief doing gymnastics or a poisoner buying a bottle of poison, is only a detection of intent. And creating a plan for a crime or preparing the place where it will be committed is preparation for a crime.
Features of objective signs of cooking are as follows:
1) preparation (action or inaction) creates conditions for the commission of a crime;
2) objective signs of preparation are not included in the objective side of the crime provided for by the Special Part of the Criminal Code (they do not put the object in real danger);
3) the crime was not started due to circumstances beyond the control of the perpetrator.
3. The subjective side of preparation for a crime is characterized by a deliberate form of guilt. The grounds for liability for an unfinished crime are distinguished by the insufficiency of signs of the objective side of the crime, which must be compensated by the certainty of signs of guilt. Therefore, preparation for a crime (as well as an attempt on it) can only be committed with direct intent.
4. The conditions of liability for preparation of a crime are determined in Part 2 of Art. 30 of the Criminal Code: criminal liability arises for preparation only for a serious and especially serious crime. The limits of liability for preparation for a crime are determined in Art. 66 of the Criminal Code.
5. Objective signs of an assassination attempt, described in Part 3 of Art. 30 of the Criminal Code, as actions (inaction) directly aimed at committing a crime, are essentially determined by the elements of a crime provided for by the Special Part of the Criminal Code. Actions directly aimed at committing a crime mean, at a minimum, the beginning of the execution of a crime - an intrusion into the boundaries of the objective side of the crime.
Features of objective signs of assassination attempt:
a) the crime begun has not been completed (not all actions provided for by the objective side of the crime have been committed, or all actions have been committed, but the consequences provided for by law have not occurred);
b) the crime started was not completed for reasons beyond the will of the perpetrator.
6. The subjective side of an attempt requires not only a deliberate form of guilt, but also the certainty of its intellectual and volitional elements. Therefore, judicial practice and doctrine interpret attempted crime as an act committed with direct intent.
Attempted crime is classified under Part 3 of Art. 30 of the Criminal Code and the corresponding article of the Special Part of the Criminal Code.
7. Types of attempt are classified on various grounds. According to the degree of implementation of intent, an attempt is divided into unfinished and completed. An unfinished attempt occurs in cases where the perpetrator did not perform all the actions that he considered necessary to achieve his goal due to circumstances beyond his control. When the attempt is completed, the person commits all the actions (inaction) necessary, in his opinion, to achieve the goal, but the criminal result does not occur due to circumstances beyond the control of this person.
An objective criterion for assessing the circumstances of an attempt is important for establishing the signs of a specific type of completed attempt - an unfit attempt. This criterion is the reason why actions (inaction), necessary and sufficient to achieve a criminal goal, did not lead to the expected result. According to the objective criterion, among the unsuitable attempts, an attempt with unsuitable means stands out. In this type of attempt, a criminal result does not occur due to the use by the perpetrator of such tools or means that do not have the properties necessary
intended to cause harm to an object (a faulty weapon, soda instead of poison, an unusable master key or a ladder that was too short for an attacker to enter the room through a window, etc.). An attempt with unsuitable means is punishable on a general basis, with the exception of cases of using absolutely harmless means due to extreme ignorance or superstition of the person.
An attempt on an unusable (inappropriate) object occurs in cases of an attack on an object that cannot be harmed due to:
a) the absence in the object of the properties of the object that the person is encroaching on (theft of money that turned out to be counterfeit);
b) absence of the subject of the crime (an attempt to commit theft from a storage facility that turned out to be empty);
c) the absence of both the subject and the object of the crime (a shot fired at a corpse mistakenly taken for a living person).
An attempt on an unsuitable object is punished on a general basis.
Necessary clarifications
In order to better understand specific situations related to unfinished crimes, it is necessary to carefully study Art. 30 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation with comments. These explanations provide a detailed description of each of the concepts used. For example, what is meant by an unfinished crime? This does not mean at all that the person who tried to commit it suddenly changed his mind on his own initiative (due to fear, pity or indecision). Not at all.
It’s just that objective circumstances have developed in such a way that certain obstacles have arisen to completing the criminal actions that have begun. For example, it was raining heavily or there were strangers nearby whose presence did not allow us to continue what we had planned. In addition, the comments describe four types of assassination attempts:
- Unfinished. The subject did not have the opportunity to complete the initiated actions, so they did not lead to a harmful result (for example, the citizen took aim, but did not shoot because he was detained).
- Finished, when the action was objectively carried out, but the expected consequences, dangerous for society, never occurred (the offender shot and missed).
- An assassination attempt committed with inappropriate means. That is, they, in fact, cannot harm anyone.
- An attempt that was made on an unusable object. The subject of the crime has lost its properties or is completely absent.
Reading such explanations makes the essence of this article clearer.
Fair retribution
What threatens a violator accused under Art. 30 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation? The term of his punishment for such acts is established by the court, guided by Art. 66 of the Criminal Code of Russia.
In accordance with it, first of all, it is necessary to understand the reasons that did not allow the target to commit the crime he intended. Sometimes this circumstance completely changes the attitude towards the defendant. Further, in part 2 it is stated that for the very fact of preparation the punishment cannot exceed half of what is provided for in the corresponding article for an already completed crime. For an attempt, the amount of punishment and term should be less than three-quarters of the maximum possible. The court makes a final decision only after considering all the circumstances of the case. Both the reasons that prompted the person to commit this offense and the consequences to which his unlawful acts led must be taken into account. But the use of life imprisonment or the death penalty under this article is not provided for by law.
Criminal intent
Sometimes offenders carefully prepare to commit a crime. They carefully study the situation, adjusting it if necessary to create the necessary conditions. Sometimes a whole plan is drawn up, for the implementation of which the necessary means and tools are selected. But sometimes, due to a combination of unforeseen circumstances, it is not possible to bring your criminal intent to its logical conclusion. However, there remains a clear attempt to deliberately commit an unlawful act. Such actions are considered by Art. 30 CC.
It has three components, each of which qualifies actions in one way or another, distinguishing them according to certain characteristics. Art. 30 of the Criminal Code only specifies for what crime the perpetrator committed all his actions. In this case, it makes it possible to understand what the offender wanted to achieve and what means he used to achieve this. All evidence discovered during the investigation must indicate the suspect's intentions. Only then, in accordance with the law, can he be held accountable under this article. When considering the circumstances of the case, no approximation or guesswork should be allowed. Facts must be clear about intentions.
