Italian Military Criminal Code

Author: Huang Feng
Publisher:
Publish Date: 1998-05-01
Features: The "Italian Military Criminal Code" consists of two main parts: the "Military Criminal Code for Peacetime" and the "Military Criminal Code for War." These two codes, applicable to different periods, were promulgated on the same day (February 20, 1941) and came into effect on the same day (October 1, 1941). The "Italian Military Criminal Code" provides a unique model of criminal legislation: a dual system where ordinary criminal legislation and military criminal legislation coexist. This model, which establishes a separate special military criminal legal system alongside the ordinary criminal legal system, has the following main characteristics, and these characteristics explain its rationale and legal basis. The "Italian Military Criminal Code" adopts a unified legal system, combining strict criminal law (i.e., substantive norms on crimes and punishments), criminal procedure norms, and some norms with the nature of organizational law into a single code. In this sense, its title can be translated as "General Principles of Military Crimes" and the second part ("Specific Provisions of Military Crimes") contains criminal substantive norms; the third part ("Military Criminal Procedure") is entirely adjusted to litigation issues, with Chapter 3 from Article 227 to Article 283 specifically regulating the special organizational system of military courts, exhibiting certain organizational law characteristics.