Circumstances to be established during investigation of the involvement of minors in the illegal production, manufacture, purchase, storage, transportation, shipment or sale of narcotics, psychotropic substances or their analogues

Abstract

The scientific article discloses the circumstances to be established during the investigation of the involvement of minors in the illegal production, manufacture, acquisition, storage, transportation, forwarding or sale of narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances or their analogues. As a result of a detailed analysis of the scientific literature on criminology and the criminal process, it was established that at the current stage of development, this issue remains insufficiently researched. The positions of scientists regarding the importance of the circumstances to be established in certain methods of investigation of criminal offenses are considered. It is established that in criminal offenses committed by minors, in addition to the circumstances provided for in Art. 91 of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine, it is also necessary to find out: 1) complete and comprehensive information about the person of the minor: his age (date, month, year of birth), state of health and level of development, other social and psychological features of the person, which must be taken into account when individualizing responsibility or selected educational events. If there is evidence of a minor's mental retardation not related to mental illness, it should also be determined whether he could fully understand the meaning of his actions and to what extent he could control them; 2) the minor's attitude towards the act committed by him; 3) living conditions and upbringing of a minor; 4) the presence of adult instigators and other accomplices of the criminal offense. In the course of the study, it was found that every circumstance that must be established at the beginning of the pre-trial investigation of this category of crimes in accordance with Art. 91 of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine should be considered in relation to the circumstances provided for in Art. 485 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (taking into account the age and socio-psychological characteristics of minors) in order to achieve the objectives of criminal proceedings, in particular when establishing: a) the circumstances of the fact (event) involving a minor in the illegal production, manufacture, acquisition, storage, transportation, forwarding or sale of narcotics means, psychotropic substances or their analogues; the circumstances of the minor's culpability (it is necessary to establish the exact age in order to be able to prosecute); b) circumstances characterizing the person of a minor (their living conditions, upbringing, state of health, level of development).