Study of the Constituent Elements of the Pickpocketing Crime

Abstract

Pickpocketing is a relatively common type of crime in Chinese judicial practice. The two basic characteristics of pickpocketing are that the crime should take place in a public place and the object of pickpocketing should be the property carried by others. Although the judicial interpretation has established the characteristics of pickpocketing, the debate on it has not subsided, specifically with the dispute on the definition of “public places” and “carrying”. Public places are categorized into completely open public places and relatively open public places. So the nature of public places in specific cases should be analyzed. The scope of the property being carried not just includes the property on the body of an individual, but also includes the property being placed within a safe distance from the individual in the surrounding area.