Trends In Russian Criminal Policy In The Context Of The Pandemic Crisis

Abstract

The article is intended to assess the legislative innovations that appeared in the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation during the spread of the Corona virus pandemic (COVID-19) from the point of view of their feasibility and necessity. Within the framework of the study of trends in Russian criminal policy, based on the analysis of changes in the text of the criminal law and administrative legislation for the 1 year period (April 2020-April 2021), five basic trends were identified, taking into account the monitoring of scientific publications. A scientifically-based assessment of the identified trends has made it possible to answer important questions in the areas of effective use of criminal legislation, namely the efficiency of the state's response to the needs of society during the crisis associated with the pandemic; the usability of novelties; the criminological validity of the bans introduced. The study applied a systematic and structural approach; a formal, legal, sociological, formal and logical method of expert assessment. The study also highlights a clear tendency on the part of the legislator to broaden the scope of criminal liability in order to reflect the process of digitalization in framing criminal legislation. As a conclusion, it is noted that current trends in criminal policy do not meet the criteria of a systematic and integrated approach. Priority measures to remedy the situation are proposed.