| China’s "Code of Criminal Procedure" does not provide for a "situation note",but there are a large number of "information notes" in criminal cases.The "information note" discussed in this article refers to the materials issued by the investigating organs or departments that clearly indicate the problems related to the criminal case.According to its content,it can be classified into four categories: substantive,procedural,evidentiary and reporting.The "statement of the case" is essentially verbal evidence,which is usually relatively brief,spanning three stages: investigation,review of prosecution,and trial.The author investigated 100 criminal cases and found that an average of 6.2 "information notes" would be used in each criminal case.According to the different types of cases and the different sentencing methods of the defendants,the frequency of use of the "information notes" would change.In practice,there is a lack of uniform title and standard format in the use of "situation Note",the scope of its proof is very wide,but the way of cross-examination is only a formality.The court has a high acceptance rate of "Note of circumstances",but the standard of adoption is not clear.Although the Criminal procedure Law does not explicitly mention the "statement of circumstances",some articles of judicial interpretation in our country refer to the "statement of circumstances" directly or indirectly,and there are very few articles explicitly referring to the "statement of circumstances" evidence capacity.Academic circles have been discussing the evidence capacity of "explanation of circumstances" in theory.There are different opinions about absolute negation,relative negation and relative affirmation.Among them,relative affirmation is more in line with the present situation and expectation of judicial practice.According to the view of relative affirmation,substantive "situation note",procedural "information note" and "evidentiary" statement have evidentiary ability,but reporting "information note" cannot be used as evidence.As to what kind of statutory evidence does a statement of information with evidentiary capacity fall into,there are also several points of view,such as witness testimony,documentary testimony,documentary evidence theory and classification correction,as a result of the statement of Information and the testimony of the witness,There are essential differences between documentary evidence and other kinds of legal evidence,and the "explanation of circumstances" is essentially a kind of material to record the process of investigation,and its function is similar to that of the record of investigation.The revision of the Criminal procedure Law also provides the support for the evidence of the record.Therefore,it can be regarded as a kind of investigative record.The probative power of the case statement varies according to whether it is true or not and its relevance to the facts of the case.The use of "information notes" can reduce the gap between legal and objective reality,correct defective evidence,fill the doubts caused by different standards of proof,improve efficiency and save resources.However,the disadvantages of using "explanation of circumstances" also exist,such as weakening the effectiveness of exclusion,increasing the probability of causing unjust and false cases,infringing the rights and interests of the defense,making the investigators dereliction of duty,damaging the image of the judicial organs,and so on.In the face of the coexistence of advantages and disadvantages,we should,under the condition of affirming and giving play to the positive role of "explanation of circumstances",regulate its production,limit its use,perfect the system of investigators’ testifying in court and other supporting rules,and carry out reasonable regulation.This paper discusses the related problems of "situation Note" from the empirical situation of the "explanation of circumstances". |
