检视与调整:老年犯罪人量刑制度新思考

Review and Adjustment: A New Thinking on the Sentencing System of the Elderly Offenders

老年犯罪人由于认知能力降低、身体状况差导致其责任能力降低,需要在刑罚裁量时予以从宽。但是通过对老年犯罪人量刑规定的梳理发现,法定量刑情节和酌定量刑情节都存在其不合理之处。首先是法定的从宽年龄设定过高,其次是酌定从宽规定不明确,酌定从宽的量刑情节适用难,造成立法规定和司法规定在刑罚裁量应用过程中的双向从严。需要考察年龄与责任能力的关系、结合我国实际状况对刑罚裁量的制度进行合理化调整。

Due to the decline of cognitive ability and poor physical condition, the elderly offenders have lower capability to take responsibility, thus require lenient sentencing on their crime. But according to the analysis of the sentencing provisions of the elderly offender, there are something unreasonable in both statutory sentencing and extenuatory sentencing. Firstly, the statutory leniency age is much elder; secondly, extenuatory lenient provisions is not clear, so it is difficult to apply to discretion of sentencing, which result in severe sentencing in practice in both legislative and judicial provisions. There should be proper adjustment to penalty measurement taking age and capability for duties as well as the actual situation of our country into consideration.