Legal encyclopedia "MIP" » criminal lawyer » Article 110 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation - incitement to suicide. Lawyer's comments
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Driving a person to suicide or attempted suicide through threats, cruel treatment or systematic humiliation of the victim’s human dignity.
Punishable causes of suicide
A person may be criminally liable for incitement to suicide if the incident occurred for one of the punishable reasons. The most common of these is persistent threats. The victim can receive them in writing, in personal contact with the accused or in the presence of witnesses. The essence of these threats does not affect the crime.
Another reason for driving someone to suicide is cruel treatment of a person. This includes the following cases:
- the victim was subjected to physical violence, her health was systematically harmed;
- the victim suffered mental suffering;
- a person was deprived of freedom without legal grounds;
- the victim was forced into sexual contact;
- the victim was deprived of water, food and shelter.
Another punishable reason for incitement to suicide is systematic humiliation. These include slander, moral humiliation, ridicule of a person’s physical defects.
Definition and Responsibility
- Driving a person to suicide or attempted suicide through threats, cruel treatment or systematic humiliation of the victim’s human dignity - is punishable by forced labor for up to five years with deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities for up to seven years or without it, or imprisonment for a term of two to six years with or without deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities for a period of up to seven years.
- The same act committed:
a) in relation to a minor or a person who is known to the perpetrator to be in a helpless state or in financial or other dependence on the perpetrator;
b) in relation to a woman who is known to the perpetrator to be pregnant;
c) in relation to two or more persons;
d) by a group of persons by prior conspiracy or an organized group;
e) in a public speech, publicly displayed work, mass media or information and telecommunication networks (including the Internet)
Punishable by imprisonment for a term of eight to fifteen years with deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities for a term of up to ten years or without it and with restriction of freedom for a term of up to two years or without it.
Object and subject of the crime
The object of this crime is the person himself who committed suicide or attempted to do so. Any person can be a victim, from a teenager to a mature, self-asserted person.
The subject in a case of incitement to suicide can be a person over 16 years of age who is aware of his actions. That is, he threatened and subjected the victim to violence deliberately, in order to bring her to an extreme state.
During the consideration of the case, the relationship between the actions of the accused towards the victim and the act of the victim itself must be proven. It is also important that in such cases the victim's suicide note is not taken into account.
The subjective side of this crime is that it can be either intentional or based on the negligence of the actions of the accused.
The guilt of the accused can be proven if there is appropriate testimony from witnesses. In this case, the criminal will definitely be convicted. It is also advisable to provide the court with correspondence between the victim and the criminal, which contains threats and blackmail of the victim.
Identifying signs of suicidal behavior
Emotional and psychological changes
- Bored appearance, sadness, despondency, irritability.
- Indifference or, conversely, hostility towards others.
- Constant fear, anxiety, feeling of helplessness, despair.
- Dreams with scenes of disasters or accidents, internal anticipation of trouble.
- Loss of interest in usual activities. Absenteeism, decreased academic performance, frequent disappearances from home without explanation.
- Changes in appearance and behavior
- Untidy appearance, unblinking gaze into emptiness.
- Quiet and monotonous, slow or accelerated speech. In response to questions - silence or “yes/no/don’t know.” Grouchiness, whining.
- The child seems to be preparing for something: he carefully cleans the room, sorts photographs, and distributes his things. This is especially dangerous if he is not prone to such behavior.
- Loss of appetite or overeating.
- Bullying at school and beyond. Participation in fights, riots with the involvement of law enforcement agencies.
- Addiction to tobacco, alcohol, drugs.
- Changes in the assessment of reality and one’s own life. When a teenager remembers past events with pessimism, thinks only about troubles and does not see any prospects for himself in the future.
- Reasoning that life has no meaning, hints about the intention to commit suicide.
- On social networks, the child searches for groups dedicated to suicide and contacts destructive sects.
“If you notice even one warning sign, try talking to your child. Ask how you can help. Share your concerns with your parents and consult with a school psychologist - a specialist will tell you which method will be effective. Talk to your children about safe communication on the Internet."
Signs of being driven to suicide
Reasons that give the right to believe that suicide was the result of someone’s influence may be the following circumstances:
- handwriting experts will prove that the suicide letter was written under dictation or that the handwriting in it is completely fake;
- witnesses will testify that someone had a negative influence on the suicide;
- The autopsy results will reveal additional information.
Relatives or close friends of the victim can report forced suicide. After receiving this application, the investigator must interview people from the victim’s environment and find out the key circumstances of his life.
Types of self-destructive behavior
Russian psychologist Andrei Ipatov identified several types of self-destructive behavior. Knowledge of the typology will help parents and teachers carefully adjust the child’s behavior and, possibly, save his life. But the most effective way to improve the situation is to seek help from a psychologist.
Self-affirming
A teenager often tries to prove something to himself and others - especially if he is a member of a group or wants to attract the attention of an individual or relatives. The problem is that he is not able to calculate all possible consequences. For example, a child commits minor offenses and then brags on social networks about what and where he stole. Or he gets involved in mischief at the risk of his life: he runs across the road in front of a moving car, tries to jump onto the roof of an accelerating train.
“Redirect the child’s attention to other, safe options for self-affirmation: a mountaineering club, a stunt school. Now there are even parkour sections. The guys are trained by professionals there, so the thrill remains and the risk is minimized.”
Defender
Teenagers who grow up in conflict families are more likely than others to need approval and external support. The difficult home environment pushes them to truancy, wander aimlessly through the streets, and even run away. Self-destruction for them is a way to gain psychological safety and relieve internal tension.
“Helping a teenager does not necessarily mean confidential conversations. You can organize a class hour with practical exercises, where the children will be told how to cope with anxiety.”
Imitative
This type includes adolescents prone to addiction. They are in dire need of approval, but are rarely antisocial, rather obsessive. Such children try to justify absenteeism, begging, smoking and drinking alcohol with their increased vulnerability. Even the ban on the sale of alcohol and tobacco products to persons under 18 years of age does not stop them.
“In order to bring a student out of a destructive state, it is important to develop in him independence of decisions and responsibility. Explain: forcing yourself on your interlocutors is not the best way to make friends.”
Demonstrative
Manipulation of adults is a proven scheme. Hysterical demands turn into threats: “If you don’t do as I ask, then right now I’m going to throw myself off the roof.”
Teenagers with demonstrative behavior begin to drink alcohol and smoke early. Most often, the cause of self-destruction is the desire to win someone’s attention.
“If a child tries to manipulate through screaming, tears and threats, consult with a school psychologist and involve parents in the conversation.”
Protest
He doesn’t care that it’s winter outside and he might catch a cold. The main thing is to annoy someone who annoys him with increased care. If in cold weather a grandson takes off his hat to spite his grandmother, he most likely has a protest type of auto-aggression.
Wanting to “revenge” imaginary and real insults, and at the same time to assert himself, a teenager is capable of physically harming himself. If left to chance, the child may become a wanderer or become involved in gambling.
“Children with a protest type of self-destruction are socially fenced off. Show empathy when communicating with them, explain what non-conflict and tolerant interaction with people looks like in reality.”
Suicide and suicidal behavior
In adolescence, hormones are in full swing, and you want to assert yourself within your social group. And this, of course, is always accompanied by stress. Complexes and problems with parents can completely unsettle you - does life even have meaning?
“Suicide is the deliberate taking of one’s life, a specific action. Suicidal behavior - thoughts, statements, threats and demonstrative attempts at suicide, which almost never lead to death."
The mentality pushes Russians to overcome difficulties on their own. People are prejudiced towards psychologists, believing that sharing secrets is a sign of weakness. But there are problems that can only be dealt with together with a specialist. This is especially true for children.
“Every year, every 12th teenager aged 15-19 tries to commit suicide. Signs of suicidal activity - a child's cry for help. In 90% of cases, teenagers have no direct desire to give up their lives. About 75% of the guys revealed their intentions, but no one heard them.”
Causes of suicide
- Conflicts within the family. The teacher cannot control other people's relationships, but the child's behavior will tell about the excessive demands that adults make. You can tactfully talk with parents and invite them to diversify the student’s leisure time.
- Conflicts at school. Bullying comes first. Children cannot always agree, so it is important for adults to take part in resolving contentious disputes.
- Unhappy or unrequited love. Do not brush off children's problems, even if they seem naive nonsense to you.
- Material and everyday difficulties.
- Depression and mental disorders occur during protracted quarrels between parents.
- The aggressive Internet environment has a negative impact: propaganda of sex, violence, murder and suicide.
- Genetic factors.
- Incurable diseases.
Punishment for incitement to suicide
Article 110 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation regulates liability for incitement to suicide. According to it, the accused in this case can receive 5 years in prison if the victim committed suicide, and 3 years in prison if there was a suicide attempt.
Many experts believe that such a punishment is not harsh enough, since most often only persons who have negatively influenced minors receive such a term of imprisonment. However, the court can reclassify the case as premeditated murder if a young child or an insane citizen was driven to suicide, as well as if the victim was physically forced to commit suicide.
Signs of auto-aggression
It is difficult for relatives to detect signs of self-destructive behavior - the children spend almost all their time outside the home. In addition, teenagers usually hide the reasons for increased anxiety: it seems to them that adults are simply asking questions, encroaching on personal freedom.
“If the problem is identified in the early stages, it can be solved quite easily. In most cases, its root is simple overexertion. When a teenager is depressed, ignores meals, or deliberately hurts himself, you need to consult a neurologist. Prescribing sedatives should lead to improvement."
Eating disorders are another scary problem. Teenagers readily succumb to images that are aggressively imposed by society. Girls exhaust themselves with diets, “cleanse” the body with enemas, diuretics and laxatives in order to become like Instagram stars. The result can be anorexia, exhaustion, and metabolic disorders.
Or, on the contrary, internal problems, the child begins to unconsciously binge on high-calorie and heavy food. The result is obesity.
To feel special and experience unusual emotions, teenagers begin to have sex early and try psychoactive substances. One of the manifestations is the dispute “who is cooler”. In an effort to prove to himself and his comrades what he is worth, the boy may begin to jump on rooftops and cling to the carriage of a departing train.
“In the life safety course, we try to convey to the children the dangers of deliberately creating dangerous situations. Under a powerful drug, the teenager seems to be capable of anything and absolutely invulnerable. But arrogance, alas, often turns into tragedy.”
