The article “Rape” provides for measures of influence against persons who have committed an unlawful attack on relationships developing in the sexual sphere.
The Civil Code in this case regulates the provisions for drawing up and filing a claim for compensation for damage, if any. Amendments are regularly made to legislative acts and should be taken into account when assigning punishment. Multi-channel free hotline Legal advice on criminal law. Every day from 9.00 to 21.00
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Development of the norm
Article 131 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation is not the first norm that establishes liability for committing abuse. Punishment for violence began since the appearance of the first monuments of law. Corrective rules were applied depending on who the violence was committed against. For example, when a noble lady was the victim, the rapist responded much more severely.
Historical documents dating back to the 16th century indicate that criminals were punished for the act in question with hard labor. The average term was set at 4 to 8 years, but if the crime involved molestation, then more severe measures were applied to the perpetrator - up to 12 years.
The procedural legislation of the Russian Empire since the time of Peter I also provided for punishment for rapists. They were sentenced either to death or to hard labor, which were imposed for life. These cases were initiated on the condition that the injured party screamed for help.
The legal proceedings did not accept cases in which the victim was the bride or wife of the perpetrator.
It is worth noting that it has already stood out:
- simple;
- qualified rape.
A situation where the victim killed herself was considered as an aggravating circumstance.
There was also an article for rape in the criminal law in force in the USSR. Some qualifying criteria were provided for, in particular, suicide of the victim, committed by a group, as well as the use of violence against a person who has not reached puberty. The article for rape in this case did not indicate that the victim was a female. Article 131 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation has been amended several times. In particular, the 2009 edition significantly increased liability for crimes committed in relation to persons who, at the time of the assault, had not reached the age of fourteen or eighteen. The criminal law provided for punishment in the form of life imprisonment.
Harm to animals
The Criminal Code deals with such acts under Article 245, which determines liability for death. As well as mutilation of animals as a result of cruelty.
Depending on the severity, the following is provided:
- If there are signs of hooliganism, personal gain, sadism, or committed in front of young children. Penalties up to 80 thousand rubles or six months' income of the convicted person, public work up to 360 hours. No more than 1 year of correctional labor, no more than 1 year of restriction of freedom and no more than 6 months of arrest.
- When a group crime is committed, by prior agreement or it is organized in advance. Penalties from 100 to 300 thousand rubles or the income of convicted persons from one to two years. Community service up to 480 hours, no more than 2 years of correctional labor and no more than 2 years of imprisonment.
Compound
Rape, including rape of a minor, provides for a separate offense.
An object
The objective signs of the act in question are as follows:
- The main object is the sexual freedom of females. If we talk about those who have not reached the age of sixteen, then the object is sexual integrity. Sexual freedom is understood as the ability to choose a partner in your sexual life. It is implemented at the discretion of the person. Immunity indicates the impossibility of having sexual intercourse with persons under the age of sixteen.
- An additional sign is health.
Only a female can be raped. In this case, her age, social status and other characteristics will not be taken into account.
In judicial practice, situations arise when wives, relatives and other persons are the injured party.
Objective side
The objective side will cover actions related to sexual intercourse.
The verdict indicates that violence is being used against the injured party, in addition, the perpetrator may take advantage of the victim's helplessness.
The paragraphs of the article in question do not reflect the definition of sexual intercourse. Lawyers and other specialists in the field of criminal law in this case use the Resolution of the Plenum, which reflects a brief concept.
The full designation is spelled out in textbooks, for example, Brilliantov. The new law contains certain characteristics of this composition. The legislator points out that it does not matter how long the sexual intercourse lasted, what is important is the fact of penetration of the male penis into the vagina.
The design provides that only a guy can commit an assault. Sexual intercourse in this case is expressed in a natural form. Accordingly, only females can be raped. The perpetrator uses violence or threatens to use it.
It could be:
- physical;
- psychological.
In the first case, the impact is on the human body, while the perpetrator aims to suppress the will of the victim. This can be put into practice through reprisals, torture and other influences. Often this type of influence has external expression. If we talk about internal, then this is understood as giving the victim narcotic substances, toxic and other components.
There will be no change in qualifications if the victim suffered minor or moderate harm as a result of the assault. The composition is formal, that is, the legislator does not indicate the occurrence of mandatory consequences.
With psychological influence, the perpetrator affects the psychological side. It can be expressed in different ways, in particular, threats are made to use physical violence against the victim, including murder, dissemination of information and other actions. However, it is worth considering the condition - the victim perceived the statements as a real threat. If death occurs, additional qualifications are required.
Subject of the crime
The Criminal Procedure Code does not contain the signs of the subject of the attack, since they are fully reflected in the criminal law.
Stand out among them:
- Individual. Consultants point out that a person may be a citizen of the Russian Federation, have another citizenship, or not have one at all.
- The age of fourteen is required for a child to act as a subject. A minor is not a subject.
- The disposition stipulates that the perpetrator must not be deprived of his sanity.
The subject's identity must be male. This is a feature of the composition.
Subjective side
Legal comments indicate that the subjective side is expressed in the form of direct intent.
The courts of the republics and other entities indicate that the perpetrator:
- understands that he is committing an assault against the will of the victim;
- desires to have such sexual intercourse.
When qualifying the crime, it will not be taken into account what motives and goals the perpetrator was guided by. However, in order to be able to individualize punishment, motives must be established.
How to prove innocence when accused of rape?
To defend yourself when accused of rape, you must:
- understand the proof of the absence of corpus delicti in the acts that you are charged with, namely the absence of sexual intercourse between you and the victim, the girl’s consent to sexual intercourse, if there are signs of physical violence on the girl - sexual intercourse in a perverted form will be proven, but by mutual consent consent
- since examinations are required for this crime, and even as soon as possible, a rape lawyer will help you formulate and put in writing questions for experts, since re-appointing an examination is quite problematic and the courts rarely agree to this
- petition, as part of the investigation of the case or its consideration in court, to order additional examinations that will help establish your innocence (read our additional material in the section
- if necessary, we are ready to offer you an independent legal investigation in order to establish the necessary circumstances to maintain a line of defense
- The defense will also take other actions aimed at defending your position on the case, so the range of activities should not be considered closed and exhaustive
Qualifying features
A strict type of liability is provided for by part 2 of the norm in question. This is due to the fact that qualified types of crime are reflected.
These include:
- Commitment of an encroachment by a company. The condition is that the perpetrators have agreed among themselves in advance. The group can also be organized.
- The victim was threatened with death or serious harm.
- Special cruelty was used. This may apply to both the victim and third parties.
- As a result, the victim was infected with a sexually transmitted disease.
- Committed against a person who has obviously not reached the age of majority.
As in the case of theft, a group of persons is recognized as a company that commits forcible sexual intercourse with one or more victims.
The legislator also includes in this category groups that acted together, but each of the perpetrators commits violence against one or more victims. The composition ends at the moment when the first representative of the group enters into an intimate relationship with the victim. In practice, there are situations when violence is used against cattle. However, an animal cannot act as a victim under this article. Domestic cattle are not protected in this sense by the legislator.
Threats of killing or causing grievous harm may be used against the victim. In addition, the perpetrator may act with particular cruelty. An examination is required in any case. Threats are expressed not only in the form of statements; the perpetrator can perform actions on the basis of which the victim perceives the threats realistically.
For example, this is a demonstration of weapons and other objects that pose a danger to humans. Such actions do not require additional assessment under Article 119 of the Criminal Code.
If the outcome was the victim becoming infected with a sexually transmitted disease, then a special clause of the norm in question is applied. According to the Civil Procedure Code, the victim can file a claim for compensation for moral damage caused to her. The condition is that the guilty person knew that he had such a disease. No additional assessment is given under Article 121.
Over the past year, many similar cases have been considered by the courts. A large number of attacks are committed with qualifying characteristics.
Why Article for Cattle Rape?
So find some cattle and let's do your dirty work! There was indeed a huge wolf skin lying on the floor in my room, but I didn’t pay much attention to it.
- ContentsBovine rape
- Oh yeah, that's cattle rape.
- Ksyukha 13
- The case is initiated in no other way,
- and cattle don't give a damn
- When we went down there steeply
- Her grandmother was
- -Are you from the police? - didn’t even ask
- And to stop this senseless
Qualification and delimitation
Nothing should be overlooked by the investigative authorities when considering such categories of cases. In particular, when the perpetrator committed several attacks at the same time or there is a small time gap, the assessment is given as a single ongoing action. A similar position is expressed by the Plenum of the Supreme Court. If there is a long gap, compounds are formed that are assessed separately under Article 131 of the Criminal Code.
Other actions of a sexual nature are not included in the disposition of the norm in question. If these occur during or outside of sexual intercourse, then qualification is carried out according to the combination of elements provided for in Articles 131 and 132 of the Criminal Code. In this situation, it does not matter whether there is a time interval between these actions or not.
During sexual intercourse, the victim may suffer:
- harm of moderate severity;
- beatings;
- slight harm.
The listed actions do not require additional assessment under criminal law. When such activity was directed towards the family of the victim or other persons, it is qualified as additional composition.
If the victim is killed during rape, then the actions are assessed according to the totality of the relevant articles of the Criminal Code. When a perpetrator kills a woman after sexual intercourse in order to hide traces of the assault, then the norms of Part 2 of Articles 105 and 131 of the Criminal Code are applied to him.
Lawyers do not have a clear opinion regarding the qualification of a crime when the perpetrator kills the victim with his own hands after sexual contact, while pursuing the goal of mockery, mockery or other motives that have a sadistic orientation. In such cases, the judicial authorities often assess such actions as involving rape. However, the authors do not find a direct connection between violence and murder. In this regard, it should not be considered as a related case.
If the rapist acted from necrophilic motives, then the act cannot be assessed as related. This is due to the fact that causing death terminates all relations aimed at protecting sexual freedom or the integrity of female persons.
The perpetrator, who leaves the victim in a helpless state after sexual intercourse, resulting in the death of the latter, is liable for the totality of offenses enshrined in Articles 105, 131, 125 and 109 of the Criminal Code. Which standard will be applied depends on what intentions the person had in mind. Article 134 of the Criminal Code has clear distinctions from rape of a person who has not reached the age of majority or is a minor. The main differences are related to the fact that in the first case there is voluntary consent to perform sexual intercourse. However, the victim must clearly understand the nature and significance of the actions that are performed on her.
Article 245. Cruelty to animals
Chapter Cruelty to an animal for the purpose of causing it pain and suffering, as well as from hooligan motives or selfish motives, resulting in its death or injury -. Full contents Chapter 1.
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For actions pursuing depraved goals of a sexual nature, an article is provided for rape or attempted rape. Despite harsh punishment, there are citizens in society who commit such crimes. Violence is prosecuted by law and falls under Art. Rape is a crime against sexual integrity and personal freedom.
Statistics
If we consider the available data for 2003, more than 5.5 thousand people were convicted in the country under the standard in question; after five years, the number decreased by 500 people. Subsequently, the number of convictions began to decline. In 2013, about 3 thousand charges were brought.
When considering punishment, it can be noted that in 2014, 2.9 thousand people were convicted.
The majority, namely 2.5 thousand of them, were sentenced to imprisonment. The remaining 11 percent received suspended sentences. Regarding acquittal decisions of judicial authorities:
- In 2014, only 14 people were acquitted.
- Three were able to get the case dismissed on exonerating grounds.
The act in question without qualifying signs is punishable by the judicial authorities with real imprisonment. For example, out of 900 people, 770 were sentenced to this measure. The average punishment is five years.
In a situation where the perpetrator commits the illegal assaults in question against persons who, at the time of the commission, have not reached the age of eighteen, or there are other qualifying criteria, a greater number of decisions contain punishment in the form of actual imprisonment. The approximate period in such cases is set from 5 to 15 years.
When it comes to terminating a case, this can be achieved based on the following circumstances:
- rehabilitating;
- not rehabilitating.
In the first situation, the death of the guilty person, as well as other types, is recognized as such. The only exceptions are acts adopted as an amnesty. Under Parts 3–5 of Article 131 of the Criminal Code, only four criminal cases were dismissed. When considered in the context of the total number of convictions, this is 0.6 percent.
Court practice
There are many examples of practice. Among the measures used, fines and suspended sentences are rare. The offender can count on parole only in certain situations. Often the victim's family appeals the decisions.
Examples of cases are:
- The court of the city of Moscow convicted citizen M. It was established that he raped citizen E. while in his living quarters. E. made attempts to leave the apartment, but M. stopped her, used violence and did not allow her to leave. He had two sexual intercourses that did not have a significant gap in time. Based on the results of the investigation, the perpetrator was sentenced to imprisonment. The applied period is 7 years.
- The judicial panel, by way of cassation, made adjustments to the initial verdict in the criminal case. Initially, citizen M. was convicted under Part 3 of Article 131 of the Criminal Code. The board attributed the actions he committed to Article 134 of the Criminal Code. She justified her position by the fact that the mere fact that the victim has not reached the age of sixteen does not mean that she is in a helpless state. It is necessary to assess the mental and physical development of the victim, and whether she has previously had sexual relations. The first instance did not take into account these provisions and incorrectly assessed the situation.
Sentences in practice vary. Most often the punishment is imprisonment.
