The concept of innocence in criminal procedure

Abstract

The concept of “innocence” is an important category of criminal proceedings; alongside the concept of “guilt”, it is the central question resolved in the course of proceedings in criminal cases. However, this term remains poorly studied in theory and legislation. The article examines the instances, in which the concept of “innocence” is used in the text of the current criminal procedure law. Analysis of the norms of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation that establish the circumstance in proof, regulate the questions of rendering verdict by jurors and court sentence, as well as prescriptions of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, reveals a number of issues related to the normative theory of innocence. The comparative study conducted on the Articles 73, 299, 339, 302 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation allows detecting contradictions in the scope of the concepts of guilt and innocence used therein. The author distinguishes between the factual and legal understanding of innocence, as well as substantiates the need for the existence of its specific type – presuming innocence. The arguments are advanced for the possibility of declaring the defendant not guilty based on the acquittal of the jury. For enhancing legal certainty, the author offers the original concept of innocence. The conclusion is made that the issues associated with the normative theory of innocence cause difficulties in law enforcement, and their resolution may affect the accuracy of establishing circumstances in proof, as well as the final court decision.