Beating and its difference from torture and causing minor harm to human health.

Article of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation for torture

Unfortunately, in society there are often people who want everyone around them to be physically or morally dependent on them.
Fear of causing pain, which a person can feel physically or feel morally, can be formed during the long-term cultivation of criminals, through the regular creation of traumatic factors for the body or psyche of a person (causing suffering).

The article of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation for torture provides for liability for such illegal actions.

Corpus delicti

Objective and subjective side

The subject of a crime is an individual who at the time of committing the unlawful act reached 16 years of age.
Moreover, the application of punishment to a person who has reached this age is permitted even in the presence of aggravating circumstances, such as torture. Reducing the age of prosecution is not permitted. The objective side of this act consists of systematic beatings or other acts of a violent nature that affect the moral and physical state of a person, resulting in harm to the health of the victim.

Attention! At the same time, in order to qualify a crime under this article, it is important that the victim’s health is harmed not exceeding a slight one; otherwise, the offender will face more severe liability under another article of the code.

From the point of view of the subjective part of the unlawful act, the criminal acts with direct intent. That is, he realizes that he is causing mental or physical suffering to the victim and desires this.

Characteristic

Kinds

Within the framework of criminal law, there are several ways in which a criminal can torture his victim:

1. Systematic beatings.
2. Actions associated with prolonged or repeated infliction of pain: pinching, cutting, causing a large number of small injuries, thermal effects, use of electricity.
3. Violent acts of an offensive nature.

Qualification of the act

If, as a result of unlawful actions, the victim’s health was caused to a moderate or severe degree, then such a crime is qualified under Article 111 or 112. In these cases, the provisions of the law on torture do not apply.

If there are several independent episodes in the case when the criminal inflicted beatings on the same victim with fairly significant gaps in time, such unlawful acts cannot be considered as torture. Due to the lack of a unified system in the actions of the offender.

Main conclusions

• If, as a result of beating, the health of an individual was slightly damaged (no serious or moderate harm was caused), then these actions are regarded as torture.
• The main signs of torture are the regularity of the abuse, as well as the presence of motives that controlled the criminal.
• Torture is subject to criminal liability under article number 117 of the relevant code.
• As punishment, criminals may be subject to forced labor, and violators may be limited or even deprived of their freedom.

The difference between torture and beatings

Torture is the commission of violent actions against the victim that fall under systemic acts, that is, committed 3 times or more.
These actions should cause painful sensations in the victim, not only physical, but also moral. The legislation does not establish any time periods during which the infliction of pain by a criminal on a victim can be qualified as torture. That is, illegal actions can be concentrated either in several hours or in several months.

The main feature here is unification into a common system, a chain of purposeful actions.

Torture entails an unstable loss of a person’s ability to work, in which he cannot carry out work activities for 21 days or less.

Battery is characterized by causing harm, which in terms of severity can be classified as moderate or severe. In such cases, the perpetrator faces more severe penalties provided for in Articles 111 and 112 of the Code.

What is torture of people, how can it be distinguished from beatings and other harm to health?

There are people who want those around them to be in a state of physiological or moral dependence on them, expressed in a lack of communication due to attachment based on sympathy, or, on the contrary, based on the fear of perception of suffering that will be caused if such a connection is interrupted.

Fear of causing pain, felt physically or exerting moral pressure, can be formed during its long-term cultivation through the regular infliction of suffering on the body or psyche of one person by another, which in the practice of the Criminal Code is formulated as torture.

Differences between torture and beatings

Infliction of repeated violent actions by one person against another over a period of time of any duration, which thereby falls under the concept of a systemic act, that is, committed at least 3 times, causing painful sensations, both for the integument of the human body or its internal organs, and for mental health, refers to torture. The time frame is not in vain derived from the concept of torture, in the form of an indefinite time period, since the systematicity can consist of causing suffering for many months, or can be concentrated in several hours, while maintaining the necessary signs of multiple repetitions of actions that cause mental pain or harm physical well-being of the victim's body.

Torture includes beatings and harm to the body of the victim, resulting in a temporary loss of ability to work for no more than three weeks. Systematic beatings, that is, at least 3 times with 2 blows or performing other actions falling within the context of Articles 115 and 116 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, aggravates the harm caused to a person and aggravates the guilt of the attacker, without requiring additional qualifications according to the relevant rules of law.

If damage to the state of health, both the physical shell and the psyche of the subject, was caused regularly and therefore can be formulated as being of a systemic nature, became the cause of harm that is considered moderate or severe in severity, then the responsibility of the person as the torturer will be absorbed Art. 111 and 112 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, providing for more severe punishments for crimes.

Read below about the elements of the crime of torture.

What is torture?

This crime is qualified by the provisions of Article 117 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. The indicated norms are applied to determine whether a criminal act has been committed:

1. in case of recurrence of physical violence against the same stranger.
2. In case of systematic violence within the family, against the spouse, children and other relatives.
3. In case of a one-time beating, with multiple intense blows or other types of pain.

REFERENCE: The criminal law characteristics of the crime reflect the infliction of repeated blows or the commission of other prolonged violent acts that cause physical as well as mental pain.

The crime is based on the absence of consequences, which are considered in Articles 112 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (causing harm to health of moderate severity), 111 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (causing serious harm to health).

At the same time, it must be characterized by:

• an intentional act with the intention of causing pain;
• repetition of precedents or intense blows.

It is expressed in beating or other types of infliction of pain, including wringing of hands, section with a belt, tangible pressing of the victim’s body to the ground or other surface.

Torture also includes non-standard and sophisticated forms of inflicting moral or physical pain on the victim.

Repeated beatings are defined as beatings that occurred within a short period – not exceeding one year. It is also taken into account that previous precedents remained unpunished.

We wrote more about torture in the following materials:

• Torture of minors from the point of view of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.
• The elements of the crime of torture.

Corpus delicti

The object of the crime is the personality of the victim, the free existence of a person, his right to unhindered interaction with society. This is distorted by gross interference in his personal relationships, leading to moral trauma received by the victim.

Communications with social systems, relationships with other people are disrupted, a person begins to feel fear, moral inferiority, and inferiority.

Here there is not only real harm, but also potential harm that may arise in the form of consequences for the health of the victim.

The objective side of the crime is expressed by the actions of the perpetrator, which are supported by the evidence base of the fact of the commission of the crime. Among them:

1. the time and place of the offense, as well as the time and place of previous beatings and other violent actions against the same victims.
2. Duration and frequency of strikes, the number of which exceeds two strikes delivered one after the other.
3. The intensity of force applied by the perpetrator. Testing pain for victims.

Objective characteristics may also include such deliberate actions as deprivation of water and food. Or keeping the victim in conditions that cause significant mental and physical discomfort.

The subject of the crime is a person over 16 years of age.

Mentally competent, aware that he is committing an intentional unlawful act, expressed in physical or mental violence against another person.

The subjective side of the crime is the motive that caused the precedent to arise.

Torture is especially often a form of interaction between members of families with a low level of culture.

The motives for torture here are distorted ideas about education, including those based on morally outdated traditions of cutting children with a belt or whip. Often arise out of jealousy towards wives or cohabitants.

The population of the husband in relation to the wife has its own characteristics. We talked about where and how to film a husband beating him and what the punishment would be for beating his wife. Check them out if this is your situation.

Another common motive is a street fight and the common tendency among teenagers to dominate, humiliating, and forcibly subjugating the weaker.

Sometimes such actions are accompanied by extortion or committed for other hooligan reasons.

REFERENCE: Mostly a guilty act is committed in a state of alcoholic intoxication or intentional toxic, narcotic or other poisoning. These circumstances increase responsibility and may require additional qualifications.

If the victim provokes torture by deliberately immoral behavior, the responsibility of the perpetrator may be reduced.

Read more about the elements of the crime of “Battery” here.

Corpus delicti

To classify the totality of the actions of the attacker and the circumstances of the incident as torture, a combination of several signs is necessary, namely:

1. The harm to human health must be documented, preferably in the form of a certificate of physical damage or mental suffering, accompanied by a forensic medical examination report.
2. The harm caused to the health of the body or mental balance should not exceed the elements of criminal acts provided for beatings and/or causing slight damage to the well-being of the victim’s body.
3. The systematic nature of the effects caused, which caused physical pain or moral suffering, must be confirmed by no less than three times the commission of unlawful actions by one person against another, which may have various forms and types.
4. There must be a pronounced dependence in the actions of one subject and the occurrence of negative consequences for another individual.
5. The person accused of torture must be aware of the illegality of the actions taken and intentionally carry them out with the aim of causing harm to another person.
6. The age of the torturer must exceed the 16-year-old threshold to bring him to justice.

Types and forms of crime

The typology of types of torture is based on the harm caused, which can be as follows:

• physical – expressed in various forms of impact on a person’s integument, his senses and/or internal organs, causing pain perceived by nerve endings, and also leading to the need for wound healing and/or treatment;
• mental – which consists in the use of methods of influencing the psyche, removing it from a state of stable equilibrium, causing it to feel feelings of discomfort, grief, loss of self-esteem, fear and other manifestations that interfere with a person’s normal perception of the surrounding reality and the ability to enjoy life;
• physical-psychological - which is a combination of physical influences with the aim of strengthening moral attitudes and their association with pain caused to the body, and causing a reflex response of the body in the form of fear.

The forms of torture can be diverse, so the list presented below is open and can be supplemented:

• beatings carried out not for a short period of time, but carried out on a regular basis;
• dissection of the skin, performed with a belt, rods or other objects that damage the upper layers of the skin and leave marks in the form of stripes or scars;
• pulling out hair, not only from the head, but also from other parts of the person’s body, if this is done against his will and causes pain;
• thermal effects, which are the influence of heated or cooled surfaces of objects on a person’s skin, or his placement in a volume with hot or cold air;
• electric shocks carried out by applying electric current to the skin or organs of a person, including from the network or through shock devices;
• chemical influences, which consist in treating a person’s integument with aggressive substances that cause burning, itching, scratching and other sensations, as well as introducing substances into the body through the blood, respiratory organs or mucus;
• injections, bites, pressure, squeezing and other physical effects on a person’s integument, muscle mass and bone structure;
• deprivation of vital benefits, such as food, sleep, silence, warmth, comfortable posture, etc.;
• negative impact on sensory organ receptors, such as sound, light, tactile, olfactory and others.

Where to go and how to fill out an application?

Torture, as an act that violates human rights and violates the foundations of a civilized society, as well as due to the significant harm inflicted by the rapist on his victim, is considered a serious crime and is subject to consideration by the general justice authority.
Any fact of such a crime, confirmed by a three-time application for damage inspection, requires consideration in court, for which it is necessary to draw up a corresponding application addressed to the head of the police agency in the territorial affiliation of the place of residence of the victim of torture. A statement of torture should be filed only when there is factual evidence, at least witness testimony, that the harm caused was inflicted regularly by the same person and caused damage to the body or psyche of the victim. The optimal set of circumstances is for law enforcement agencies to have statements about similar or other types of violence, no less than twice, then the third incident can be formulated as torture and indicate a request for prosecution under the relevant article in the statement.

Read more about criminal liability for beatings and torture (Article 117 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation).

Criminal legal characteristics

Regarding these types of crimes, general trends can be identified that act as qualifications for the crime, with the aggravation of the preventive measure.

These include:

• acts committed against minors (minors) who are obviously incapable of self-defense, as well as pregnant women.
• Acts committed against two or more citizens.
• Directed towards persons performing official or official functions.
• Committed by a group of offenders, especially in the presence of national, religious or political hostility towards the victim of violence.

When qualifying, the perpetrator must be aware of the minor age of the victim, as well as the state of the woman’s pregnancy.

For the crime of “Torture”, additional qualifications are provided if it is committed:

1. using torture;
2. for hire;
3. to commit other, more serious crimes.

IMPORTANT: When committing more serious crimes, suppression in the form of determining the penalty involves qualification under a combination of two or more articles.

If damage to health of moderate severity has been caused or serious bodily injury has been inflicted, then Article 117 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation is canceled, laconically included in the context of criminal legislation, which refers to crimes against human health.

Criminal liability

Responsibility for torturing a person is provided for in Russian legislation exclusively in the form of criminal liability, taking into account the gravity of the unlawful act committed. If regular exposure to the victim in any form does not cause severe or moderate harm to the victim’s health, then liability before the law is established by Part 1 of Art. 117 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, which declares penalties lasting no more than three years in the following forms:

• supervision at the place of residence carried out by law enforcement agencies;
• forced labor;
• deprivation of personal freedom and imprisonment.

The term of imprisonment in the range from 3 to 7 years, provided for in Part 2 of Article 117 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation for torture, can be established by a judicial authority in the presence of aggravating factors, which include:

• two or more victims;
• the victim is an official or public figure, or a relative of such an entity;
• pregnancy of the victim;
• incapacity of an individual due to age or wealth, as well as financial or other dependence, or being held hostage;
• use of torture;
• group performance of actions;
• mercenary actions;
• actions against persons of a different ideology, religion, political views, nationality or race, united in a social community.

Torture, as understood by the Criminal Code, is actions aimed at forcing the victim to testify, as well as perform any other actions that the victim would not agree to in a different situation and of his own free will.

The following video will tell you about a blatant case from judicial practice regarding torture:

Aggravating circumstances

Aggravating circumstances under Part 2 of Art. 117 is considered torture:

• two or more persons;
• a person or his relatives in connection with the performance of official activities by this person or the performance of public duty;
• in relation to a pregnant woman;
• torture of a minor or child, a person known to the perpetrator to be in a helpless state, financially or otherwise dependent on the perpetrator, abducted, hostage;
• with the use of torture (they mean the infliction of physical or mental suffering in order to force the victim to testify or other actions contrary to the will of a person, for the purpose of punishment and for other purposes);
• a group of persons, a group of persons by prior conspiracy or an organized group;
• for hire;
• based on political, ideological, racial, national or religious hatred or enmity.

In addition, criminal law (Article 63 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation) specifies types of aggravating circumstances that aggravate the guilt of the accused of a crime, regardless of what article it is classified under. These include, in particular:

• relapse (repeated commission of a crime under the same article);
• involvement in the commission of a crime of persons who suffer from severe mental disorders or are in a state of intoxication, as well as persons under the age of criminal responsibility;
• revenge for the lawful actions of others.

These circumstances will also be taken into account by the court when sentencing the accused under Art. 117 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

Sergey Alekseev Lawyer, website author

Expert commentary

Beatings and torture, their difference from related crimes

Beatings

- this is the application of multiple blows, resulting in catastrophe. There may be scratches, superficial abrasions on the skin, wounds.

Basic object – bodily integrity. They do not violate the anatomical integrity of the body. Pain is caused.

Objective side

– beating or committing other violent acts that caused physical pain, but did not cause minor harm to health.

Formal composition

, the crime is completed at the moment of beating (numerous blows - 2 or more), or the commission of other violent actions (2 or more) causing physical harm. pain, but not causing health problems. Can be applied at once or over time. The severity of such injuries is not determined. If there are no traces, the court determines the beating based on the documentary evidence.

Beatings. Definition of the concept

Ushakov’s explanatory dictionary defines beatings as “blows on a living body.”

Efremova’s explanatory dictionary defines beatings as “1) Blows inflicted on someone. 2) Traces of such impacts"

Kuznetsov’s explanatory dictionary defines beatings as “blows to the body that cause pain or injury.”

• For more information about beatings, liability for which is provided for in Articles 116, 116.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, and Article 6.1.1 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation, see the publication: “Beatings under Art. Criminal Code of the Russian Federation and Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation. Liability for beatings. Arbitrage practice"

Battery is a blow intentionally inflicted on any part of a person’s body, causing physical pain and/or superficial damage.

The “medical criteria for determining the severity of harm caused to human health” approved by Order of the Ministry of Health and Social Development of the Russian Federation dated April 24, 2008 N 194n states:

“superficial injuries, including: abrasion, bruise, soft tissue contusion, including bruising and hematoma, superficial wound and other injuries that do not entail short-term health problems or minor permanent loss of general ability to work, are regarded as injuries that do not cause harm to human health "

Slap, slap, pushing away - beating?

We believe that such actions as a slap in the face, slap in the face, pushing away, etc., if these actions were not committed with the application of significant physical force with the aim of causing physical pain and did not leave superficial injuries on the body, cannot be qualified as beatings or other violent actions.

Other violent actions under Articles 116, 116.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation and Article 6.1.1 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation

Other violent actions, within the meaning of Articles 116, 116.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, and Article 6.1.1 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation traditionally include:

• wringing and twisting of hands;
• squeezing body parts;
• pinching, pinching the skin;
• binding;
• biting, pulling out clumps of hair, etc.

For the purposes of qualification under the above articles of the Criminal Code and the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation, these violent actions must cause physical pain to the victim.

The court must evaluate the above actions and, based on all the circumstances available in the case, make a conclusion about the proof or lack of proof of the infliction of physical pain on the victim from these actions and the presence of the intent of the perpetrator.

The difference between beatings and other violent acts

Beatings, within the meaning of Article 116 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, are a special case of violent actions.

The legal position on this topic was expressed by the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation back in 2008 in a supervisory ruling dated June 24, 2008, where it stated the following:

Article 116 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation is called “Beatings” and provides for criminal liability for beatings or committing other violent acts that caused physical pain, but did not entail the consequences specified in Article 115 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. It follows from this that beatings are a special case of criminally punishable violent action.

Therefore, in accordance with the disposition of this law, the perpetrator bears criminal liability for committing any violent act, including one that is expressed in the application of a single blow, provided that the victim suffered physical pain without the onset of those specified in Art. 115 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation consequences, and if such a blow, as well as other violent actions, entailed those specified in Art. 115 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, the consequences are criminal liability for intentional infliction of minor harm to health.”

Minor harm to health under Article 115 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation

According to paragraph 8 of the “medical criteria for determining the severity of harm caused to human health,” the medical criteria for qualifying signs in relation to minor harm to health are:

• temporary impairment of the functions of organs and (or) systems (temporary disability) lasting up to three weeks from the moment of injury (up to 21 days inclusive) (hereinafter referred to as short-term health disorder).
• minor persistent loss of general ability to work - persistent loss of general ability to work less than 10 percent.

Thus, any damage to the victim’s body (bruises, abrasions, wounds) that did not entail the above consequences will be qualified under Articles 116, 116.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation or under Article 6.1.1 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation, depending on the qualifying criteria. If, for example, the victim spent more than 3 weeks recovering in a hospital hospital, then most likely his health was harmed. In any case, a forensic medical examination must be carried out to draw a conclusion about the degree of harm to health.

Comparison of punishments for beatings and minor bodily harm

As can be seen from the table below, sanctions for acts provided for in Articles 116, 116.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation and Part 1 of Article 115 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation are somewhat different, while the most “serious” from the point of view of public danger is the crime provided for in Article 116 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation providing for deprivation of liberty:

Recommended publications:

• Single blow - beating? Judicial practice (to qualify an act as “beating”, is it necessary to strike multiple times or is one strike enough?)
• Where to go if you were assaulted? (citizens report allegations of beatings to both magistrates, law enforcement agencies, and the prosecutor’s office). They were beaten. We contact the police (it is not always advisable to file a complaint about beatings directly to the court)
• Statement of assault to the police. Sample (the injuries were caused by an acquaintance); Reporting a crime to the police (beatings for hooligan reasons were inflicted by unknown persons on the street)
• Amount of compensation for moral damages for beatings. Judicial practice (the right of a citizen to compensation for harm caused to life or health is one of the generally recognized fundamental inalienable human rights and freedoms)
• Amount of compensation for moral damages for minor injuries to health. Judicial practice (examples from judicial practice of consideration of cases on the recovery of compensation for moral damage for causing minor harm to health)
• Statement of claim for compensation for moral damage caused by a crime (beatings or harm to health of varying degrees of severity);

We recommend other publications in the review “Beatings and harm to health. Responsibility. Arbitrage practice"

Causing moderate harm to health

The Criminal Code provides for liability only for intentional infliction of moderate gravity

harm to health. Highlight:

A) causing moderate harm to health without aggravating or mitigating circumstances (Part 1 of Article 112),

B) causing moderate harm to health under aggravating circumstances (Part 2 of Article 112),

C) causing moderate harm to health under extenuating circumstances (Articles 113, 114).

A) Intentional infliction of moderate harm to health without mitigating or aggravating circumstances (Part 1 of Article 112).

An object

- human health.

Victim

- anyone.

Objective side

– infliction of moderate harm to health, resulting in one of the following consequences:

- harm not dangerous to human life

- long-term health disorder (temporary disability lasting from 21 to 120 days);

- significant persistent loss of general ability to work by less than 1/3 (loss of ability to work from 10 to 33%).

Composition – material

. The crime is completed from the moment of causing moderate harm to health for any of these reasons.

Subjective side

- intent, may be
direct or indirect
. Motives, goals in the post of domestic revenge, in a quarrel, fight in the absence of a hooligan motive.

Subject

– a general, natural, sane person who has reached 14 years of age.

Beating and its difference from torture and causing minor harm to human health.

Minor harm to health (see Article 115 of the Criminal Code) is determined by the following criteria (see paragraph 8-8.2 of the Medical Criteria):

- short-term health disorder - temporary dysfunction of organs and (or) systems (temporary disability) lasting no more than three weeks (no more than 21 days);

- minor persistent loss of general ability to work (persistent loss of general ability to work 5%).

Intentional infliction of minor harm to health (Article 115 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). From the objective side, specific signs are: a) short-term health disorder or b) minor persistent loss of general ability to work. One of these signs, therefore, is sufficient to assess the harm to health as minor and for liability under Art. 115.

Compared to the previous Code (Part 2 of Article 112 of the Criminal Code of the RSFSR 1960) it is decriminalized, i.e. It is not recognized as a crime to cause damage (abrasions, scratches, bruises, etc.) that did not cause either a short-term health disorder or a minor permanent loss of ability to work.

The subjective side of this crime is expressed only in intent - direct or indirect. Careless infliction of minor harm is not criminally punishable. If minor harm is caused in a state of physiological affect, liability also arises under Art. 115; At the same time, when imposing a punishment, the court is obliged to take into account the mitigating circumstance provided for in paragraph “h” of Part 1 of Art. 61 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. Forced infliction of minor harm in a state of necessary defense or during the detention of a person who has committed a crime, criminal liability under Art. 115 does not entail.

Hooligan motives act as qualifying characteristics (Part 2 of Article 115); motives of political, ideological, racial, national or religious hatred or enmity, or motives of hatred or enmity against any social group, with the use of weapons or objects used as weapons.

The object is the health of another person.

Ob.st. – an act aimed at causing harm to health, consequences in the form of minor harm to health and a causal relationship between the act and the consequences.

Subject is a person over 16 years of age.

Beatings (see Art. 116 of the Criminal Code) are intentional actions that caused physical pain, abrasions, bruises, small wounds, etc., but did not entail the consequences specified in Art. 115 of the Criminal Code. Law enforcement officials do not regard these injuries as harm to health and do not determine their severity (see paragraph 9 of the Medical Criteria).

Battery is an action characterized by repeated blows. As a result of beatings, bodily harm may occur. However, after such actions there may not be any objectively detectable damage. If, as a result of repeated blows, harm to health occurs (severe, moderate or light), then such actions are not considered as beatings, but are assessed as causing harm to health of the corresponding severity. If, as a result of the beating, no objective traces remain, then the forensic expert in the conclusion notes the complaints of the person being examined, including pain on palpation of certain areas of the body, the absence of objective signs of damage, and does not determine the severity of the harm to health. In such cases, the establishment of the fact of beatings is carried out by the bodies of inquiry, preliminary investigation or the court on the basis of non-medical data.

The object is the bodily integrity of a person.

Ob.st. – active actions aimed at causing physical pain to the victim – striking (strikes), twisting arms, painful pinching, squeezing, etc.

Material composition. The crime is over from the moment the actions of the perpetrator cause physical pain to the victim. If as a result of the actions the perpetrator suffers harm to health, the act should be qualified under Art. 111, 112, 115 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

Sub.Art. - guilt in the form of direct intent.

Beatings (Article 116 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). The object of the crime (in the strict sense of the word) is not health, but a wider range of relationships - the bodily integrity of the individual.

The actions included in the objective side are also broader than the title of the article suggests. They are: a) beating or b) committing other violent acts.

Batterings characterized by repeated blows (at least three) do not constitute a special type of injury. In some cases they act as a method of action and causing harm (for example, causing minor harm to health, torture, hooliganism, etc.), in others - as independent criminal acts of behavior punishable under Art. 115 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

If the beatings cause harm to health (severe, moderate or light), then such actions are not considered as beatings, but are assessed as causing harm to health of the corresponding severity (Articles 111, 112 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, etc.).

A beating may leave marks on the victim’s body (abrasions, scratches, bruises, small wounds, etc.) and may not leave any visible damage. If traces are left, there is damage, they are recorded by an expert; he describes them, notes the nature of the damage, their location, signs indicating the properties of the object that caused them, the age and mechanism of formation. However, these injuries are not classified as harm to health and their severity is not determined.

If the beatings do not leave behind objective traces, then the expert report notes the victim’s complaints, including palpation of certain parts of the body, and the absence of objective signs of damage. The severity of harm to health is also not determined. In such cases, the establishment of the fact of beatings is carried out by the preliminary investigation authorities, the prosecutor and the court on the basis of non-medical data.

In addition to beatings, it is punishable under Art. 116 commission of other violent acts. These may include wringing and twisting of hands, pinching, squeezing body parts, tying, pinching skin, tearing out clumps of hair, etc.

Just like beatings, other violent actions receive a criminal legal assessment under Art. 116 in the presence of two conditions: 1) they did not entail the consequences specified in Art. 115 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, i.e. minor (and even more so moderate or severe) harm to health; 2) they caused physical pain to the victim. Physical pain can also be accompanied by mental experiences and suffering, but a mandatory sign is the infliction of physical pain by violent actions. Hence, if such pain is not caused to a person who is not tightly tied with a rope, or only a mental impact is exerted on the victim, Art. 115 is not applicable.

In addition to the possibility of exemption from criminal liability for this category of cases on the basis of Art. Art. 75 and 76 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, it is necessary to remember the provisions of Part 2 of Art. 14 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, which should be applied due to the revealed insignificance (for example, in isolated acts of pinching, wringing of hands).

Beatings as repeated striking should be distinguished from torture committed through systematic beatings (Article 117 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation): in the latter case we are talking about several acts of beating, separated in time. Battery, as an independent type of crime, presupposes a coincidence in time of blows inflicted on the victim.

Subjective side. The crime is committed with direct intent: the perpetrator is aware of the social danger of repeated blows or the use of other violent actions, foresees the possibility or inevitability that they will cause physical pain to the victim, and desires this.

In Part 2 of Art. 116 qualifying signs are hooligan motives; motives of political, ideological, racial, national or religious hatred or enmity, or motives of hatred or enmity towards any social group.

Torture (see Article 117 of the Criminal Code) is the infliction of physical or mental suffering through systematic beatings or other violent actions (prolonged infliction of pain by pinching, cutting, multiple, including small, injuries with blunt or sharp objects, exposure to thermal factors and other similar actions).

Other violent actions may be in the nature of torture. Torment is understood as actions that cause suffering (causing illness) by long-term deprivation of the victim of food, drink or heat, placing him in conditions harmful to health (keeping him in these conditions) or other similar actions.

As a result of torture, harm to the health of the victim may occur.

Torture (Article 117 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). The crime is described in the law using negative and positive characteristics. Yes, Art. 117 applies if the act described therein did not entail the consequences specified in Art. Art. 111 and 112 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. This means that this article covers the infliction of minor harm to health by torture, and in this case additional qualifications under Art. 115 is not required. At the same time, if the act resulted in intentionally caused serious or moderate harm to health, on the contrary, Art. 117, here torture is considered as a method and a circumstance qualifying the infliction of such harm (clause “b”, part 2 of article 112 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation).

The signs specified in Art. 117, characterize the objective side of this crime, which consists of:

- systematic beatings or other violent acts,

- causing physical or mental suffering.

Comparison of dispositions of Art. Art. 116 and 117 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation shows that the methods of action in the acts described therein are similar. They are: a) beatings; b) other violent actions.

The first difference is that torture is expressed in systematic beatings, i.e. striking more than twice. In this case, not only the formal, quantitative characteristic (how many times) is important, but also the intensity of the impact on the victim, who perceives repeated acts as something incessant, continuous, permanent. Because of this, such acts should not be significantly distant from each other in time. Repeated beatings cannot be considered as torture if, for one or more episodes that provide grounds for qualifying the actions as systematic, the statute of limitations for criminal prosecution has expired or administrative penalties and decisions on the application of such measures have already been applied to the person for these actions not cancelled.

Other violent actions as the second method of torture textually coincide with those specified in the beatings (Article 116 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). However, their content is not equal. When tortured, they mean other violent actions (in addition to systematic beatings), such as: prolonged infliction of pain (pinching, cutting, etc.), infliction of multiple (including small) injuries with blunt or sharp objects, exposure to thermal factors (for example , cauterization with a hot iron), other similar actions, including prolonged deprivation of water, food, heat, hanging upside down, flogging, etc.

Thus, other violent actions during torture in quantitative and qualitative terms (repetition, duration) differ markedly from those specified in Art. 116 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

The second part, constituting the objective side of torture, is physical or mental suffering, which must be causally caused by systematic beatings or other violent actions, and arise from them. Torture is characterized by the suffering of the victim, i.e. physical and mental experiences. Unlike one-time physical pain (Article 116 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation), suffering as a human condition has an extension over time, since beatings are inflicted systematically, renewing, reinforcing and intensifying experiences, and other violent actions also imply not the simultaneity of violence, but repetition and some of it length, duration.

The subjective side of torture is expressed in direct intent. The perpetrator carries out violent acts, realizing that they cause physical or mental suffering to the victim, and desires this.

In Part 2 of Art. 117 provides for a more severe sanction for causing suffering by violent actions: a) in relation to two or more persons; b) in relation to a person or his relatives in connection with the performance of official activities by this person or the performance of public duty; c) in relation to a woman who is known to the perpetrator to be pregnant; d) in relation to a person who is known to be a minor or a person who is known to be in a helpless state or in financial or other dependence on the offender, as well as a person who has been kidnapped or taken as a hostage; e) using torture; f) by a group of persons, a group of persons by prior conspiracy or an organized group; g) for hire; h) for reasons of political, ideological, racial, national or religious hatred or enmity, or for reasons of hatred or enmity towards any social group.

The vast majority of the above qualifying circumstances coincide with those discussed above when analyzing the qualified elements of murder (part 2 of article 105 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation), intentional infliction of grave (parts 2 and 3 of article 111 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation) and moderate infliction (part 2 of Art. 112 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation) harm to health.

The content of the circumstance provided for in paragraph “g” of Part 2 of Art. 117, expanded. A minor, whose torture entails increased punishment, is understood to be a person who was under 18 years of age at the time of the torture. To enhance responsibility, it is necessary to establish knowledge: the perpetrator knew (he knew) that the person being tortured had not reached the age of majority.

The financial or other dependence of the victim on the perpetrator limits the person’s ability to resist the assault and facilitates the commission of torture, which is recognized by the perpetrator. Financial dependence is usually understood as a situation where the victim is fully or partially dependent on the offender, lives in his living space, etc. Other means official dependence, as well as that which stems from family or marital relations, is based on law or contract (for example, dependence on a guardian and trustee, the accused on an investigator, etc.). In all cases, the dependence must be significant, i.e. capable of seriously complicating or even suppressing the victim’s will to resist.

Torture of a person who has been kidnapped (Article 126 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation) or taken as a hostage (Article 206 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation) also increases the punishment. In such cases, we are talking about a real set of crimes and the actions of the perpetrator must be qualified in addition to paragraph “g” of Part 2 of Art. 117 also under Art. 126 or Art. 206 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

A specific qualifying circumstance of torture is the use of torture. The concept of torture is contained in the note to Art. 117: Torture means inflicting physical or mental suffering on a person in order to obtain information or a confession from him or to punish him or achieve other goals.

In relation to torture, this means that the perpetrator commits violent acts (multiple or prolonged), causing physical or mental suffering to the victim in order to force the latter to give out information or confess (where the money is - as in the example above; whether there was an act of adultery and etc.) etc.

The difference between beatings and torture and causing minor harm to health:

Torture differs from beatings in the systematic nature of violent actions that cause physical or mental suffering, and in their intensity