论定罪免刑的必要性——《刑法》第37条的再解释

On the Necessity of Exemption from Conviction and Punishment——Reinterpretation of Article 37 of the Criminal Law

"定罪免刑"是指某一行为被刑法评价为构成犯罪的情形下,人民法院基于特定事由不对该行为人予以刑罚处罚的一种制度。有观点认为相比较于酌定不起诉制度,定罪免刑不仅导致司法资源被不当浪费,而且不能实现刑罚目的,但定罪免刑的有罪宣告本身就是一种法律后果,能够实现刑罚目的。检察院在处理案件方面的局限性也说明了定罪免刑存在的合理性。应当对《刑法》第37条在不同阶段的不同适用提出不同的解释,以合理适应定罪免刑制度。

"Conviction and exemption from punishment"refers to a system in which the people's court does not punish a person for a specific reason under the circumstance that a certain act is evaluated by the criminal law as constituting a crime.There is a view that compared with the discretionary non-prosecution system,the conviction and sentence exemption not only leads to the improper waste of judicial resources,but also fails to achieve the purpose of penalty.However,the conviction itself is a legal consequence and can realize the purpose of penalty.Moreover,the limitation of the procuratorate in handling cases also illustrates the rationality of conviction and exemption.This paper believes that different interpretations of Article 37 of the Criminal Law at different stages should be put forward in order to reasonably adapt to the conviction and exemption system.