Criminal Rule of Law: Theoretical Interpretation and Practical Verification

Author: Cai Daotong
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-12-01
Features: In terms of practical verification, this book delves into typical individual topics, including issues such as marital rape, disorderly conduct in court, crime and order, and criminal policy. These issues, whether large or small, are elaborated on in detail within the framework of criminal legal governance. For example, regarding marital rape, it has been a topic of broad interest among criminologists, sociologists, and legal scholars in recent years. Cai Daotong adheres to the view that "marital rape exists," analyzing it not only from the perspectives of law and society but also through a feminist lens. In previous discussions on marital rape, there has been confusion between the normative and the actual, which has hindered deeper reflection on the issue. Normatively, marital rape is a legislative issue—whether it should be criminalized. Actually, it is a judicial issue—whether marital rape constitutes a crime under current law. Cai Daotong argues for the proposition that "marital rape exists" from the normative angle, presenting a well-supported and theoretically broad perspective, making it a compelling and insightful work on the topic. The exploration of criminal policy is also a highlight of the book. Compared to marital rape, criminal policy is an even broader issue. In this book, Cai Daotong proposes the "focus on the major and relax the minor" criminal policy concept. "Focus on the major" refers to applying strict criminal policies to serious crimes that threaten social survival and development, public peace and order, such as organized crime, violent crime, and official corruption, where intervention is necessary or difficult. "Relax the minor" refers to applying lenient policies to minor criminal offenses, sporadic crimes, victimless crimes, or offenses that can be "settled" with victims, where intervention is unnecessary or possible. This "focus on the major and relax the minor" criminal policy is essentially equivalent to the "heavy on the serious and light on the minor" policy practiced in the West, offering valuable insights for addressing crime issues today. Of course, the discussion on criminal policy does not delve deeply into the "strict crackdown" issue, which is indeed a regrettable omission. In reality, the relationship between "strict crackdown" and criminal legal governance is very close, involving the limits of criminal policy. Of course, based solely on the analysis in this book, Cai Daotong's approach to posing, summarizing, and analyzing issues differs from that of his peers, showcasing his unique academic personality.