Prosecution and Defense in the Russian Criminal Process

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to identify problems arising in the process of realizing the
functions of prosecution and defense in criminal proceedings of the Russian
Federation. The author analyzes the concept of “adversarial nature”. A direct
relationship is established between the adversarial principle and the positions of
prosecution and defense. The necessity of comprehensive improvement of the existing
criminal procedure legislation is shown by creating an effective mechanism to protect
the rights and interests of individuals and legal entities that suffered from illegal
actions, as well as protecting a person from unlawful and unsubstantiated accusations,
infringing his rights and freedoms. In a positive way, the similar experience of foreign
countries is being investigated. Among the main findings outlined in this article, the
following points are worth emphasizing: in the field of criminal justice, provisions of
the Criminal Procedure Code and international regulatory legal acts should be provided
in relation to the presentation of the initial charge in order to eliminate the negative
consequences not only for the outcome of specific criminal cases, but also for law
enforcement in the preliminary investigation process in general; the solution of the task
of expanding the adversarial principle at the preliminary investigation stage should be
based on the legislative abolition of the unilateral procedure for introducing the facts
to the materials of the criminal case presented by the defense; a clear legal status of
the parties of the defense and prosecution, provided by the law and the mechanism
for its execution, takes criminal procedural relations to a new qualitative level, which
positively affects the reputation of the social state.