Some Specific Featues of Investigating Illegal Hunting

The authors analyze key problems in the investigation of illegal hunting. They specifically note that, in spite of the active work of many nature protection bodies, the damage inflicted by illegal hunting amounts to about RUR 19 bln. annually. The remoteness of the areas where such crimes are committed poses a considerable obstacle to the work of investigation-operative groups. The authors conducted a detailed study of the problems in the identification and, consequently, effective investigation of such crimes. It is also highlighted that their investigation and detection require expert knowledge of the specific features of hunting and the life of wild animals. In conclusion it is stressed that the existing problems make it easier to commit crimes under discussion, and the situation requires a most active participation of the law enforcement in the fight for preserving biodiversity and the improvement of the effectiveness of investigations.

On the Prospects of Using the Handwriting Analysis of a Structured Text in Law Enforcement Work

The authors examine some problematic aspects of the practical application of the developed forensic methods and methodologies in law enforcement work. They discuss the possibilities of studying handwriting not only for identification, but also diagnostic purposes, for example, to determine the significance of information in certain parts of the handwritten text for the writer. In order to prove that such possibilities exist, the authors present a brief description and examples of the experimental use of the methodology that makes it possible to determine, relatively quickly, the attitude of the person to relevant circumstances and facts by analyzing experimental samples of handwriting obtained through copying, by hand, a specially prepared structured text.

On the Effectiveness of the Prosecutors Role in Pre-Trial Proceedings: the Position of the Legislator and the Opinion of the Law Enforcer

The author examines the problems connected with the position of the prosecutor in a criminal process from the standpoint of the effectiveness of the prosecutor’s work. Specifically, using statistical data on the situation with the legality and the quality of preliminary investigations and the results obtained by other Russian scholars who researched this issue, the author shows that the transfer of investigators from the jurisdiction of the prosecutor’s office to a newly created independent Investigation Committee of the Russian Federation, the transfer of the right to the procedural guidance of the investigation from the prosecutor to the head of the investigation body, revoking the prosecutor’s right to coordinate the decision of the investigator, inquirer, or an inquiry body to initiate a criminal case, and in general the right to do it — all of these, in fact, improved the effectiveness of the supervisory function and, consequently, improved the legality and quality of preliminary investigations. At the same time, the author presents his own view on the directions of improving the effectiveness of the role of the prosecutor in the pre-trial proceeding, which should ensure a general sustainable development of Russian criminal procedure legislation.

To the Characteristics of Person Occupyting the Highest Position in the Criminal Hierarchy: Criminalistic and Criminal Procedure Aspects

The authors use the analysis of investigation-court practice and doctrinal positions of researchers to raise the issue of determining the subject of the crime under Art. 210.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. The authors describe a number of problems regarding the possibility of establishing and proving the guilt of a person who went through the criminal world’s ritual of “coronation” and thus acquired the status of a “thief in law”. The authors also present their own opinion on the fallacy of the lawmakers’ decision that occupying the highest position in the criminal hierarchy is an independent corpus delicti as it does not meet the obligatory criterion of public danger and, consequently, cannot be called a crime. The authors also believe that the abovementioned corpus delicti is, in essence, neither the action nor the inaction, but is an (actual) state, thus it cannot be called a deed and, correspondingly, a crime.

Topical Issues of Investigating the Sale of Narcotic Drugs and Highly Potent Substances on the Information and Telecommunication Network Internet

The authors analyze the criminalistic methodology of investigating the sales of narcotic drugs and potent substances on the information and telecommunication network Internet. They present statistical data and examples of the new ways and means of distributing narcotics and potent substances through Internet platforms. The authors have analyzed the causes and conditions for the mass dissemination and use of narcotics and potent substances in the situation of modern society’s transition to the new era of innovative technologies. They examined the issue of the development of the sales of narcotics and potent substances using the platforms RAMP and HYDRA, and the possibilities of bulk phone text messaging of links to these sites. The authors suggest measures on improving the cooperation of the law enforcement bodies with other agencies with the goal of preventing the distribution and sales of narcotics and potent substances on the Internet.

Modeling in the Process of Verifying a Suspects and a Defendants Alibis

The author examines the use of modeling in the verification of a suspect’s and a defendant’s alibis. In the conditions of digitization, there are wide prospects for the use of such a method. Alibi verification can be viewed as a special case of the criminalistic reconstruction of the event of the crime, and the modeling method is morphologically included in the process of reconstructing the investigated event or its part. Flowcharts are designed with the use of the working systems of alibi verification proposed by the author, they reflect forensically relevant features of the investigated object that should be selected from the flow of information as information blocks and properly organized. Information blocks are interconnected and correlate with each other. The more content each block contains, the more accurate the result produced by the constructed model will be. The author concludes that modeling should result in building an adequate model of an episode of the criminal event under investigation that will reflect data on the “history” of the alibi and will make it possible to predict its variants.

Problems of Conducting Open Operative Search Activities Aimed at Detecting and Solving Crimes of Counterfeiting

The authors examine the establishment of expertology as an independent complex discipline connected with other branches of legal theory. They conclude that an expert occupies a universal position regardless of the type of court procedure, and that the foundations of forensic analysis are of a complex nature. They also study the connection between expertology, criminal court procedure and other types of procedures, forensic science, psychology and substantive branches of law. It is concluded that the theoretical bases of these disciplines could be enriched by the achievements of forensic work, the development of science and technology. The authors draw parallels between research approaches, different established points of view and practical achievements regarding the issue under consideration. Expertology is presented as an independent research branch (discipline), which justifies the need for a special person who uses special knowledge and is given a procedural status under the current Russian legislation. The problem of the unification of corresponding rights, duties and liabilities in various types of legal activities is described.

Specific Tactics of Obtaining Criminalistically Significant Information at the Initial Stage of Investigating Thefts of Oil and Petroleum Products During Their Storage and Transportation

Under the current legislation, the investigator is responsible for investigating and solving all cases in progress. A high-quality comprehensive investigation of criminal cases connected with theft of oil and petroleum products makes it possible to fulfil these duties successfully. The establishment of the guilt of a person in the process of proving during the investigation of theft of oil and petroleum products, which belong to the category of grave crimes, presents certain difficulties connected with the specific features of such crimes. If a tactically correct sequence of investigative actions is chosen at the initial stage of investigation, the investigator may get a considerable amount of relevant criminalistic information, that will further make it possible to achieve the goal of the investigation in the form of criminal prosecution against the guilty person. The author examines some specific features of the tactics of investigative actions at the initial stage of investigating thefts of oil and petroleum products during their storage and transportation at the fuel and energy enterprises. The author also presents recommendations on improving the tactics of investigative actions in the investigation of thefts of oil and petroleum products.

Researching the Process of Using Special Knowledge in Criminal Activities as a Condition for the Objectivity of the Cognition and Qualification of Criminal Realitys Manifestations

The author researches the process of using special knowledge in criminal activities while taking into account the contents of the object of criminalistics, and the essence of the criminalistic culture of law enforcement. Examples are presented to illustrate the features of using specialized knowledge in the criminal sphere. The author analyzes the conditions for defining the role of a concrete person, acting as a specialist, in preparing and committing a crime. The specific features of the theoretical platform of criminal law sciences are singled out. Priorities in the classification and qualification spheres of criminal law knowledge are established. The author draws attention to the identification, prediction and diagnostic essence of criminal knowledge and describes the connection between the nature of a lawyer’s cognitive activities and the qualification boundaries of criminal law actions. It is noted that the process of cognizing the criminal reality is dialectic. The author shows the primacy of the substantive understanding of the act of crime while taking into account the criminal law and procedure benchmarks for working out methodological and tactical decisions in the process of crime investigation.