Since April 16, 1997, the death penalty has been prohibited in Russia. This type of punishment has not been used for more than 20 years, although there is still talk of returning to it. For example, the corresponding bill was submitted to the State Duma by deputies of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation headed by Gennady Zyuganov. In this article we will look at the concept of the death penalty itself, and also weigh its pros and cons.
Article 59 of the Criminal Code states that exceptional punishment may be established for especially serious crimes that encroach on life
Death penalty in Russia
The first moratorium on the death penalty in Russia can be called the decree of Empress Elizabeth Petrovna of 1744. It noted that the death penalty in the Russian Empire “is carried out not for proper guilt, but for others and innocently.” Therefore, according to the decree, descriptions of the cases of criminals were required to be sent to the Senate and await further orders. During the reign of Elizabeth Petrovna, not a single execution was carried out.
A new “bloodless” period began in Russia only at the end of the 1990s. The abolition of the death penalty was an essential condition for Russia's accession to the Council of Europe, and in 1996, representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs signed Protocol No. 6 of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, which provided for its abolition.
The first moratorium on the death penalty in Russia can be called the decree of Empress Elizabeth Petrovna of 1744
The Russian State Duma has not yet ratified the document, therefore, although the ban is in effect in accordance with international documents, the death penalty has not formally disappeared from Russian legislation. Article 59 of the Criminal Code states that exceptional punishment may be established for especially serious crimes that encroach on life. All contradictions in the legislation were finally resolved by the clarification of the Constitutional Court in 1999.
“The fact that Protocol No. 6 has not yet been ratified, in the context of the current legal realities, does not prevent it from being recognized as an essential element of the legal regulation of the right to life,” the message says. “Since 1997, the death penalty cannot be applied, that is, punishment in The death penalty should neither be imposed nor executed.”
Reduces the value of human life
The team of authors of the “Course of Criminal Law”, prepared by the Department of Criminal Law and Criminology of Moscow State University, notes: the use of the death penalty by the state undermines such a fundamental principle of public morality and morality as the complete inviolability of human life; at the same time, the state “justifies murder in the public consciousness, relegating the highest value—human life—to the level of an act of will7.” If it is possible to kill criminals, then many uneducated people, including those in the state apparatus and in the security forces, usually ask the question - why then it is impossible to kill “traitors”? And the criteria for “betrayal” can be very different and depend on the subjective opinion of the one who decides what is betrayal and what is not. And in this case, any citizen will be under threat of execution.
The presence of the institution of the death penalty dehumanizes society. I spoke and continue to speak out against the death penalty (and not only in the USSR) also because this measure of punishment provides for the presence of a permanent terrible apparatus of executors, an entire institution of the death penalty8.
Andrey Sakharov
Pros and cons of the death penalty
Despite the actual moratorium, disputes over the justification of using the death penalty in Russia have not subsided to this day. They flare up especially strongly after the next brutal and high-profile murders. We will not discuss whether the death penalty is needed in our country or not. We will simply look at the main arguments for and against such a punishment. Let everyone draw their own conclusions.
Despite the actual moratorium, disputes over the justification of using the death penalty in Russia have not subsided to this day.
Pros of SK
The first plus: an eye for an eye. There is no question of revenge here. This is the fairness factor. If one person killed another, doesn't he deserve the same fate? Perhaps this is somewhat inhumane (but more on that later). However, supporters of the death penalty take the position that the rights of victims must be considered first. It's hard to disagree with them!
Second plus: content. Our country allocates about 35-40 thousand rubles per month for each prisoner. This is higher than the average salary in many regions. Russia spends more than 700 million a day on the maintenance of prisoners, given their number. How much is this expense per year? A lot. Thus, serious violators of law and order, even after being taken into custody, continue to harm the citizens of the country, receiving very serious sums for their share of maintenance.
Third plus: alternative. The death penalty has an alternative - life imprisonment. And again, it’s worth asking: is it better to spend your whole life behind bars, knowing that you will never be released again? The answer lies within each individual individual. Someone would prefer to die rather than sit for years, silently waiting for inevitable death.
Our country allocates about 35-40 thousand rubles per month for each prisoner - this is higher than the average salary in many regions
The fourth benefit: deterrence. The very fact of the death penalty as a form of punishment can prevent more than one crime. In an attempt to take someone's life, the criminal may fear for his own. If only it weren't too late.
Fifth benefit: protection of society. On June 11, 1962, Frank Morris and his brothers John and Clarence Anglin successfully escaped from Alcatraz prison, previously considered the most secure place of detention. A person is freedom-loving, therefore, given the opportunity, a serious criminal can escape from prison. What will happen when he takes to the city streets again? It can hardly be said unequivocally that he learned his lesson.
Disadvantages of SK
Impossibility of rehabilitation. The risk of miscarriage of justice always exists. There are many known cases where a person was found innocent after several decades of imprisonment. In the case of the death penalty, it is no longer possible to acquit an innocently convicted person.
Doesn't lead to correction. The true purpose of punishment is the desire for correction. This is why parents punish their children, for example, so that they understand that this is not necessary. That is why there are different types of judicial punishment: imprisonment, correctional labor, and so on. The death penalty does not lead to correction in any way.
The existence of executioners. The presence of the institution of the death penalty in the state means the mandatory presence of executioners - people who will carry out sentences. They, in fact, will also commit murders, but unlike the criminals they will execute, this will be their job. In this context, an executioner who sent several dozen convicts to the next world will not be much different from a serial killer.
May not always be a deterrent. For some types of punishment, the death penalty, as we have already found out above, can indeed be a good deterrent. But not for everyone. For example, serial killers and maniacs who know that they are already facing the death penalty will commit more and more crimes simply because they have nothing to lose. The same can be said about terrorists, who are already constantly ready to risk their lives. For them, the fear of the death penalty will mean absolutely nothing.
general information
Article 59 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation is the highest punishment for criminals who have committed a particularly cruel crime . The death penalty, as a type of punishment is regulated by Russian legislation , and its implementation occurs through a sentence passed by the judiciary.
At the moment, the death penalty
is prohibited in many states, moreover, it is illegal .
There are also those countries where this drastic method is quite widespread in relation to criminals, but again, only persons who have committed a particularly cruel act deserve this.
Although, for example, China can offer execution even for minor sins. At the moment, the most common method of execution is execution, followed by hanging, injection, electric chair and beheading.
Population's opinion about the insurance company
According to the study, 33% of citizens surveyed were in favor of restoring the death penalty to its previous size (as it was in the early 90s).” At the same time, the majority of supporters of the return of the death penalty are people in the age categories 40–54 years and 55+.
Another 16% of respondents are in favor of expanding the use of execution compared to previous practice.
Sociologists note that 72% of respondents believe that capital punishment should be imposed for rape of minors, 64% for serial murder, 45% for premeditated murder, 44% for terrorism, 39% for drug trafficking, 18% for treason, 12% for an attempt on the life of the head of state.
According to the study, 33% of citizens surveyed were in favor of restoring the death penalty to its previous levels.
According to the survey, 21% of Russians were in favor of maintaining the moratorium on the death penalty, which is in effect in the Russian Federation; the share of supporters of the complete abolition of executions was 19% - more than a third of the surveyed young people aged 19–24 were in favor of this. Another 10% of respondents found it difficult to answer.
The survey was conducted from October 24 to October 30, 2022, on an all-Russian sample of the urban and rural population of 1,616 people aged 18 years and older in 137 settlements, 50 constituent entities of the Russian Federation. The study was conducted at the respondents' homes using personal interviews.
The death penalty in Russia has not been abolished by law. Since 1996, since the country joined the Council of Europe, Russia has had a moratorium on the use of such a measure of punishment for criminals; its alternative is life imprisonment. The moratorium expired on January 1, 2010, but in November 2009 the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation extended it until the State Duma ratifies the protocol on the abolition of the death penalty.
Religious aspect
There are several views on whether religion approved of the death penalty or not. On the one hand, the Old Testament dictates rather harsh and radical methods of dealing with sinners: “Vengeance is mine, and I will repay.” This is supported by the principle of talion: “an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.” At the same time, the main commandment of God is “thou shalt not kill.”
In any religion you can find quite a lot of contradictions. Historians and anthropologists explain this in their own way, but creationists see metaphors in everything. However, it is religion that has driven the death penalty for centuries. Heretics, robbers, traitors and other infidels were punished by deprivation of life precisely on behalf of very pious people.
What motivated the believing supporters of the death penalty? Firstly, with numerous quotations from Holy Scripture and apostolic injunctions. For example, in Homily 4, John Chrysostom writes that “murder by the will of God is better than any kindness.” The principle, it must be said, is quite unexpected for peace-loving Christianity.
Secondly, it was not the believers themselves who approved the murders, but the institution of the church. This social unit has often moved so far away from religious tenets that the problems and prospects of the death penalty may seem like insignificant phenomena.
The modern Christian movement does not approve of taking a person's life. This is stated by both Catholics, led by the Pope, and the Orthodox Church.
