Legal Individualisation of Criminal Punishments for Drug Trafficking in the Criminal Legislation of the Republic of Moldova
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.18662/eljpa/11.1/221Keywords:
drugs, ethnobotanicals, offence, criminal punishment, legal individualisation, deterrent effectAbstract
This study addresses the issue of the legal individualisation of criminal punishments for drug trafficking offences provided for in the criminal legislation of the Republic of Moldova. The rationale of the scientific approach lies in the need for a perpetual harmonisation of criminal legislation to the new trends of manifestation of drug trafficking, in order to make the applicable deterrent arsenal more efficient in relation to the various practical situations of committing these crimes. The aim is to re-evaluate the legal criteria for the individualisation of criminal punishments for drug trafficking offences and to assess the degree to which these criteria correspond to the deterrent purpose of the criminal punishments applicable to drug traffickers. Some solutions for a reference law on the harmonization of the punitive regime established for drug trafficking offences in strict accordance with their seriousness were substantiated. Based on the national specificity existing in the Criminal Code of the Republic of Moldova (Republic of Moldova Criminal Code, 2002), it was proposed to create a separate incriminatory framework for trafficking in narcotic substances with narcotic effect, which are new generation drugs not provided for by the 1961 UN Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs (United Nations, 1961) and the 1971 UN Convention on Psychotropic Substances. The ineffectiveness of the quantitative criterion for individualising penalties for trafficking in ethnobotanicals, represented by their quantitative proportions, has also been demonstrated. In this context, the idea of individualisation of criminal punishments for trafficking in ethnobotanicals based on qualitative criteria, which are represented by the risks that these substances pose to the health of consumers, was promoted.
References
Buzatu, N.-E. (2015). The effects of ethnobotanical drugs on the human body. International Academic Conference (19th, September 16, 2015), Florence. https://ideas.repec.org/p/sek/iacpro/2805337.html
Dobrinoiu, V., & Nistoreanu, Gh. (1992). Criminal Law: General Part. Didactică şi pedagogică
Dumneanu, L., & Ştefănoia, M. (2020). Offences related to drug trafficking in the legislation of the Republic of Moldova and Romania: A comparative law study. Universul Juridic.
European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction. (2017). Drug trafficking penalties across the European Union: A survey of expert opinion. https://www.drugsandalcohol.ie/26668/1/EMCDDA_Trafficking-penalties.pdf
European Union. (2005, May 10). Decision 2005/387/JHA on information exchange, risk assessment, and control of new psychoactive substances. https://sintact.ro/legislatie/jurnalul-oficial-ue/decizia-2005-387-jai-10-mai-2005-privind-schimbul-de-informatii-79114386
Gibbs, J. P. (1975). Crime, punishment, and deterrence. Elsevier
Lai, G. (2012). Drugs, crime, and punishment: Proportionality of sentencing for drug offences. Series on Legislative Reform of Drug Policies (No. 20). https://www.unodc.org/documents/congress/background-information/NGO/IDPC/Drugs-crime-and-punishment-Proportionality-of-sentencing.pdf
Larii, Iu., & Nucu, M. (2015). The danger and crime trends related to the illegal circulation of narcotic substances. Law and Life, 9(285). https://ibn.idsi.md/ro/vizualizare_articol/40124
Republic of Moldova Criminal Code. (2002, April 18). Official Monitor of the Republic of Moldova (Nos. 72–74/195). https://www.legis.md/cautare/getResults?doc_id=140340&lang=ro
Republic of Moldova Law No. 382. (1999, May 6). On the circulation of narcotic and psychotropic substances and precursors. Official Monitor No. 73–77. https://www.legis.md/cautare/getResults?doc_id=140340&lang=ro
United Nations. (1961). Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs (March 30). In force for the Republic of Moldova since May 16, 1995. https://www.legis.md/cautare/getResults?doc_id=117944&lang=ro
Supreme Court of Justice of the Republic of Moldova (2024a) (May 29th, 2024). https://jurisprudenta.csj.md/search_col_penal.php?id=24846
Supreme Court of Justice of the Republic of Moldova (2024b) (April 10th, 2024). https://jurisprudenta.csj.md/search_col_penal.php?id=24713
Supreme Court of Justice (SCJ) of the Republic of Moldova (July 06th, 2010). Archives of the Supreme Court of Justice of the Republic of Moldova).
Supreme Court of Justice (SCJ) of the Republic of Moldova (March 21st, 2024). Retrieved from https://jurisprudenta.csj.md/search_col_penal.php?id=24585
Supreme Court of Justice (SCJ) of the Republic of Moldova (March 13th, 2024). Retrieved from https://jurisprudenta.csj.md/search_col_penal.php?id=24553
Supreme Court of Justice (SCJ) of the Republic of Moldova (January 17th, 2024). Retrieved from https://jurisprudenta.csj.md/search_col_penal.php?id=24278
Supreme Court of Justice (SCJ) of the Republic of Moldova (January 25th, 2024). Retrieved from https://jurisprudenta.csj.md/search_col_penal.php?id=24340
United Nations. (1988). Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (December 28). In force for the Republic of Moldova since May 16, 1995.
Tanoviceanu, I. (1912). Course of Criminal Law. Workshop Gkafice Socec & Co. Society Anontma, Bucharest
Guan, X., & Lo, T. W. (2021). Restrictive Deterrence in Drug Offenses: A Systematic Review and Meta-Synthesis of Mixed Studies. Frontiers in psychology, 12, 727142. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.727142
Zolyneak, M. (1993). Criminal Law: General Part (Vol. III). "Chemarea" Publishing House Foundation
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2024 Stefan cel Mare University of Suceava, Faculty of Law and Administrative Sciences, Romania & LUMEN Publishing House
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication, with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work, with an acknowledgement of the works authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g. post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in European Journal of Law and Public Administration.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g. in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as an earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
EJLPA Journal has an Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs
CC BY-NC-ND
