Crminal Justice In France

7 Pages 1872 Words

to imprisonment. In addition, reform measures were
taken which strengthened the rights of the accused. Substantial reform has taken place in the last few decades.
In 1958, the Code of Penal Procedure replaced the Code of Criminal Instruction. On July 22, 1992, a new Penal Code was presented, which went into effect on March 1, 1994. The New
Penal Code has retained the tripartite distinction of crimes, misdemeanors, and violations, which was first established by the Penal Code of 1810. The Code also addresses some new issues such as corporate crime, the development of alternative punishments to the deprivation of liberty, and reinforcing the severity of punishments for criminals who have committed more serious
offenses. It also includes definitions of new crimes, such as offenses wherein others place persons in dangerous situations, ecological terrorism, sexual harassment, crimes against humanity, and genocide.

Crime
Legal Classification of Crime
Under both the Penal Law and Penal Procedure, there is a tripartite distinction of offenses based on their respective seriousness: crimes, misdemeanors, and
violations. (New Penal Code, Article 111-1). There are distinctions between completed and attempted acts for crimes and misdemeanors, but not for violations.
Under the Penal Code, crimes and misdemeanors can incur a 20-year sentence and a 5-year sentence respectively. Violations can incur a 2-year sentence. However, in practice, sentence length is generally 10 years for crimes, 3 years for misdemeanors, and 1 year for violations. Crimes are also classified into attacks against persons, attacks against property, and attacks against public security. Attacks against persons include intentional homicide (...