DOI: 10.7256/2305-9699.2013.1.430

Abstract: The article deals with the institution of the state awards of Russian regions. The author reveals the features and trends of the legal regulation of state awards of Russian regions. Based on statistical data collected and analyzed by the author on the general population of awarding systems of all regions of the Russian Federation, conducted a qualitative and quantitative analysis of the premium law and awarding systems of Russian regions. The author defines the typical model of awarding system of republics and other regions of the Russian Federation, shows their strengths and weaknesses, and formulate recommendations for their improvement.

DOI: 10.7256/2305-9699.2013.1.366

Abstract: This article contains a detailed analysis of the characteristics of drug-related crimes which underpin the provisions relating to the deferred sentencing of drug addicts under Art. 82.1 of the Criminal Code. The author undertook a comparative legal investigation of the mechanism used to reduce illegal distribution and non-medical use of drugs as expressed in the regulations of the drug policy strategy of the Russian Federation until 2020, and the relevant articles of the Criminal Code relating to the imposition of mandatory drug treatment. The results show that the reality of the practice of criminal law reform directed to ensure the health of the population in a target area is significantly different from the ideas proposed by the policy document. The article provides a review of some of the problems experienced by the criminal law institution in deferring the sentences of drug-addicted offenders of drug-related crimes and the ways in which this concept can develop, including in the criminal context. Most important here is how to extend the analyzed standards to persons suffering from substance abuse and alcoholism, regardless of the crime committed by them.

DOI: 10.7256/2305-9699.2013.1.394

Abstract: The author of the article points out that a state institution is allowed to restrict the human and civil rights and freedoms when it solves a social task to provide security of citizens and state. The author also provides definition of the term 'restriction of human and civil rights' and views the issues of restriction of rights and freedoms of state officials in the Russian Federation. It is noted that restriction of rights and freedoms of state officials ensures the efficient performance of state agencies, prevents from abuse by state officials and contributes to the corruption management. The author also analyzes the legal position of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation regarding the legitimacy of restriction of rights and freedoms of state officials and formulates the universal legal position of the Constitutional Court on this matter. According to this position, restriction of rights and freedoms of state officials are permitted by the law but only for the purposes of the Constitution.

DOI: 10.7256/2305-9699.2013.1.461

Abstract: This article identifies the specific effects of postmodernism on the understanding of the phenomenon of civil society in the system of legal science using the framework of modern social sciences. Special attention is paid to the scale of the penetrating influence of postmodernism in the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries to any value-semantic system, including law and civil society. The article evaluates the results of the impact of postmodernism and offers possible sociolegal interpretations of the phenomenon under consideration. The resultant conclusions can be applied in the broader context of contemporary social sciences.

DOI: 10.7256/2305-9699.2013.1.425

Abstract: The article is devoted to special features of the expertise for defining the relevance of an object to firearms. Due to the fact that the expertise methods for illegally produced weapon have certain features, the author discusses peculiarities of studying the material part of weapon during the expertise as well as methods of proof firing. To prove his conclusions, the author describes examples of expertise experience and views typical expert's mistakes which may be made in the process of the expertise. 

DOI: 10.7256/2305-9699.2013.1.395

Abstract: The article is devoted to the ideas of a famous Russian political philosopher and jurist Boris Nikolaevich Chicherin (1828 - 1904) about state, civil society, definition of law and separation of powers. Today, when researchers talk about Boris Chicherin's philosophical legacy, they usually stress out that Chicherin was one of the founders of Russian legal science. Chichern wrote a number of works directly or indirectly connected with the issues of law, politics, history and theory of state. The cornerstone of his philosophy of law was the conception of human as a free personality. Chicherin political credo was the union between the liberal state and strong power - this is what Chichern viewed as the particular feature of the Russian State. For Chicherin legal order in a state was very important. Such legal order must limit the sphere of political power in all its form, either it is a democratic republic or monarchy. Chichern warned against the despotism of crowd and believed the principle of the ruling majority as the excuse of dictatorship. However, based on A. Valitsky, this Chicherin's position was not contradictory to political liberalism. Chicherin could have been described as a 'typical liberal of the epoch when liberalism and democracy were not inseparable and could even oppose to one another'. 

DOI: 10.7256/2305-9699.2013.1.474

Abstract: This article considers the main issues relating to the existence of and the dynamic changes to political crime in Russia in relation to the legal, doctrinal and societal perception of political crime and its various forms, from Kievan Rus' to the end of the twentieth century. Using historical and legal sources, available statistical data, and various academic publications of both Russian and foreign experts, the author distinguishes two types of political crime - violent political crime and non-violent political crime, both of which are extant in modern Russian society. The qualitative and quantitative indicators of these varieties of political crime are constantly changing. At different times, different qualities of both types of political crime appear and disappear, and the situation can change dramatically, driven by various groups of objective social factors. The organization of political power of government is essential in determining the status of political crime in Russia and its perception in society. The widespread use of electoral technologies in the formation of state and local government is increasing and will lead to the growth of a special kind of political crime - electoral crime.