刑事诉讼未成年人作证资格及补强规则初探

On the Qualification of Juveniles as Witnesses in Criminal Proceedings and the Supplementary Rules

未成年人是否具备作证资格在司法实践中处于一种模糊状态,刑事被告人更是经常以未成年人不具备作证能力为由进行抗辩,理论界对此也存在不同的声音。如果未成年人具备辨别与表达能力,且案发时并无其他人证在场,或者只有同样是未成年证人在场的情况下,其证明力是否需要补强以及如何完成补强,这些问题都有待探讨。统一司法实践和理论标准,细化未成年证人作证的相关规定,明确未成年人证言补强规则具有重要的现实意义。

Whether minors are qualified to testify or not is in a vague state in judicial practice. Criminal defendants often plead that minors are not qualified to testify. There are different voices about this in the theoretical circle. If the minor has the ability of identification and expression, and there is no other witness present at the time of the crime, or only the same minor witness is present, whether the probative force needs to be reinforced and how to complete the reinforcement need to be discussed. It is of great practical significance to unify the judicial practice and theoretical standards, refine the relevant provisions of juvenile witness testimony, and clarify the supplementary rules of juvenile testimony.