Криминологическая обоснованность внесения изменений в уголовный закон: использование статистики и роль средств массовой информации

Abstract

Introduction. The foundation of the state’s strategic activity in the fight against crime (criminal policy) is a set of initial data of a criminological and social nature, the objectivity (compliance with the truth) of which is often rightly questioned, and therefore the issues of searching and selecting sources for the formation of criminal policy in order to achieving the requirement of criminological validity. Methods. In work based on the dialectical-materialistic method of scientific knowledge, the legal-dogmatic method, formal-logical and systemic methods are used. Results. Despite the fact that the scale of criminologically significant information is quite large, an obstacle to the formation of a criminologically based criminal policy is the lack of the required volume of objective data on crime. Recognizing that certain indicators themselves must be correctly interpreted (including in their interrelation and interdependence), it can be argued that correct criminological forecasting requires an appropriate methodological basis that clearly indicates how it is necessary to process what is significant for the fight against crime information. Recognizing the problem of crime latency, it is worth emphasizing the need to find tools for objectifying crime data. In particular, it is worth paying attention to the promise of an integrated approach to the analysis of criminal phenomena, including, at a minimum, “cross-reconciliation” of data from various government bodies and non-state structures (subject to confidence in the objectivity of the information they provide). When making changes to the criminal law, the use of official statistics as a basic source of information is recognized as justified. Of particular importance is the issue of searching for alternative sources of information, which are now increasingly referred to as social expectations.