Study On The Limitation Of Death Penalty Applicable Subjects

It will be un-realistic to abolish death penalty in China, based on our current circumstance. Having death penalty under a strict restriction is the most proper option. It is most effective and most directive way to control death penalty by subject of crime limitation. This article reviews the policy of our nation limitation on applicable object of capital punishment, analyzing existing defects from the angel of fact and understanding for Amendment VIII of Criminal Law, based on the research history of death penalty applicable object control policy, foreign legislations and international conventions, concluded with our country’s basic condition, realistic factors and current legal situation.It has been clearly stated in our nation’s Criminal Law that the absolute applicable objects for restriction of death penalty is inclusive of minors and pregnant women, the relative applicable object for restriction of death penalty is the elderlies over age of 75. There are different academic controversies regarding on these 3 kinds of suitable objects of capital punishment control regulated by our country’s Criminal Law. The author elaborates and analyzes these controversies. The Criminal Law currently in effect in our nation imperfects. Author proposes a improving suggestion based on that fact. For minors, legislation should insist control capital punishment applying to them. For teen-agers just become adult, legislation should foreign legislation for reference considering multiple factors in order to control death penalty application. For pregnant women, legislation should clarify and expand the their time range under the death penalty control. For elderlies it should be made absolute to death penalty control, and decrease the inapplicable age limit of death penalty control to age of 70, then clarify the time frame for “under trail”. For unregulated lactating women, mental patient and amentia, it has not yet been set limits of the application of the death penalty in legislation, which should fully consider the characteristic of themselves to limit the application of death penalty and stipulate clearly in legislation.