The subject of proof in the criminal process of Ukraine

Abstract

The article claims that the process of proving is the main content of criminal procedural activity. It is thanks to this process that the tasks of criminal procedure are fulfilled and the objective truth is established in criminal justice. The subject of proof in criminal proceedings is one of the key categories related to the process of proving. Establishing all the circumstances that characterize such a subject contribute to a full pre-trial investigation and trial. A conclusion has been formulated, according to which evidence in a criminal procedure should be understood as the activity of the subjects of criminal justice in relation to the collection, verification and evaluation of evidence and their procedural sources, as well as the formulation of a certain thesis (accusatory or exculpatory) on this basis and the submission of arguments in support of it. This activity is retrospective in nature. The purpose of cognition in criminal proceedings is to establish a certain set of circumstances of a criminal offense, which have been called “the subject of proof in a criminal procedure.” The list of such circumstances is defined in Art. 91 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CCP) of Ukraine. The subject of proof in a criminal proceeding is the list of circumstances provided for by the Criminal Procedure Law of Ukraine, which must be established in each criminal proceeding and ensure the adoption of a corresponding procedural decision. The list of circumstances to be ascertained in criminal proceedings regarding criminal offenses committed by minors should be considered as a supplementary, clarifying subject of proof in relation to the general subject of proof. Circumstances to be established during criminal proceedings regarding the application of coercive measures of an breeding nature in relation to minors who have not reached the age of criminal responsibility, and regarding the use of coercive measures of a medical nature constitute a separate, independent subject of proof in a criminal process, determined by the characteristics of a person who has committed a socially-dangerous act, and the specifics of the criminal procedural form.