From youth we know that fire is very dangerous. This rule is not invented, but written by the huge number of lives of victims of a murderous flame. But even worse, if the cause of the fire was an intentional arson. Absolutely each of us can become a victim of arson. Fire is a terrible force that can take away your property, health and even life. That is why in ancient Russia, arson was one of the most serious crimes and was punished with the most severe punishment possible. And now arson at home - an article of the Criminal Code.
Legislation Details
As for modern Russia, the punishment for arson is regulated by article No. 167 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. This article establishes punishment for causing physical damage to property. Moreover, the article considers damage of two types. The first type is ordinary damage or destruction with significant damage. The second type includes damage in a dangerous way (for example, due to hooliganism, by explosion). Arson is just such a path. Let's look at the paragraphs of the article in more detail.
According to article No. 167 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, if the actions of the offender resulted in damage without aggravating circumstances that constitute a danger, the offender is fined up to 40,000 Russian rubles or the amount of the wage or other wages of the offender for up to 3 months or compulsory work time up to 360 hours, or correctional labor for up to 1 year, or forced labor for up to 2 years, or arrest for up to 3 months, or imprisonment for up to 2 years.
As for the punishment for committing an aggravated offense (including arson), the punishment here is more severe. The fine in this case does not get off. Such an offense will be punished in the form of forced labor for up to 5 years or imprisonment for the same period. Thus, we seem to have sorted out the arson (article of the Criminal Code). But there are a number of nuances.
Comments of lawyers
In their comments, lawyers note that in case of violation of Article No. 167 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, the object of the crime is relations that belong to the category of property. If the destroyed property has historical or cultural value, the offense is qualified under article 243 of the Criminal Code.
Also, cases should be distinguished if an individual sets fire to his own property and, for this reason, caused large-scale damage due to negligence to someone else’s property or to that which was the joint property of other persons and the guilty person, his actions should be qualified under Article 168 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation - "Destruction or damage to property of others through negligence." In this case, the value of the property of the perpetrator of the fire should be excluded from the total damage, and for the rest he should be responsible in the framework of the civil law field. This is also arson (article of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation No. 168), but with its own peculiarities of applying the law.
Definition Details
Except in special cases, it is necessary to clearly understand what lawyers mean by destruction and damage. They define destruction as bringing the subject of the offender into complete disrepair, and damage is understood as causing damage to the subject, the presence of which requires repair.
Now let us examine in more detail the question of what is meant by the deliberate destruction of another's property from the motives of hooliganism. Signs of such destruction include rude social disorder that expresses obvious disrespect for society or committed on the basis of ideological, political, racial, religious or national hatred or on the basis of hatred against any group of society.
What is arson?
Arson means deliberate fire, that is, the actions of the offender were carried out with the aim of creating a fire and subsequent damage to property as a result of arson.
The aggravating circumstances that were identified in this crime included the infliction of death or bodily harm to one or more persons, as well as if the arson left the victims without a single home or if they stopped the enterprise, disconnected consumers from vital resources. It is clear that there will be more punishment for such arson (article of the Criminal Code).
Other arson related articles
If the offender foresees the death or loss of health of the victim in advance, then the crime should be qualified under other articles as murder (article No. 105 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation) or personal injury (article of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation No. 111 - serious, No. 112 - medium, No. 115 - lung ) with various forms of guilt. Also, this article does not apply to situations where arson is a form of vandalism, then article No. 214 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation "Vandalism" will apply. If the arson is qualified as a terrorist act, then article No. 205 of the Terrorism Criminal Code will be applied, which is already more significant than intentional arson (article of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation).
Also, one of the reasons for arson could be neglect of security measures. Article 219 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation considers situations where arson is the result of violations of safety rules in case of fire. Usually we are talking about cases in the workplace in those situations in which the occurrence of a fire was the result of the negligence of the respondent.
Article 212 of the Criminal Code considers arson as part of the riots. If the arson was committed during a public rally or rally, then the offender will face a tougher punishment - from eight to fifteen years in prison.
Another case of arson is a forest fire. This major tragedy most often occurs through the fault of people. If the guilty citizen is found, his act will be regulated by article No. 261 of the Criminal Code, the punishment for violation of which can reach four years. Thus, we were convinced that there are still articles that regulate arson (article of the Criminal Code).
Do not forget about another aspect. An attempted arson will be criminally punished if its purpose was the life and health of two or more persons.
Careless handling of fire
It is also necessary to distinguish from arson careless handling of fire. The cause of the fire could be an abandoned cigarette butt, firecracker or other object that carries a potential fire hazard. Careless handling of fire or other sources of danger may result in improper handling of flame sources near combustible materials, in the use of technical devices with a defect that has not been eliminated.
This type of act is governed by Article No. 168 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation “Destruction or damage to property by negligence”. For this type of offense, such types of punishment are possible as a fine of up to 120,000 Russian rubles or in the amount of remuneration for labor or other income of the convicted person for a period of up to 1 year, or compulsory work is appointed up to 480 hours, or correctional labor for up to 2- x years, or restriction of liberty for up to 1 year, or forced labor for up to 1 year, or imprisonment for the same period.
The Federal Law "On Fire Safety", in particular, contains instructions on ensuring the safety of people and objects in case of fire in case of possible arson (article of the Criminal Code).
How to identify a criminal?
In order to identify the guilty person, it is necessary to conduct a fire technical examination, which is an integral part of the investigation of the fire. It must be carried out in order to establish a source of ignition. Typically, a fire examination is ordered by a court.
Any of the parties may apply for such an examination. The examination establishes all the details of what happened to find the culprit of the arson (article of the Criminal Code).
Fire examination
The examination begins with the fact that the experts inspect the scene of the fire. Then pay attention to the degree of loss of the initial state of various parts of the object. In the building, special attention is paid to fire hazard mechanisms. The greatest importance is attached to electrical appliances, wiring, cables. For study in the laboratory, combustion products such as ash and ash are taken. Not burned items are also noted.
Analyzing these data, experts establish the source (s) of ignition, their number, location, burning materials, the presence of combustible materials, the speed and direction of the flame, the temperature of the process, the total duration, the presence of an explosion. After receiving the picture, establish the probability of arson. A professional expert can recognize even the most hidden attempt to set fire (article of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation).
In order to answer a complex of such difficult questions, a forensic expert must be a very good specialist. The expert has a great responsibility in establishing the circumstances of the incident, the guilty person of intentional arson (article of the Criminal Code) and the essence of the whole criminal case.
After examination
After identifying the guilty arsonist and issuing the court decision, a plan should be developed that enhances fire safety at the facility in order to prevent the further occurrence of sad events in the form of an arson threat (article of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). The staff should be instructed. The building must be taken fire safety measures, installed a fire system, alarm, fire extinguishers.