Criminal legal mechanism for the protection of animals in the Russian Federation and prospects for its development
Authors:
1.
Kaliningrad branch of the federal state government educational institution of higher education "St. Petersburg University of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation"
(Department of Criminal Law. criminology and criminal-executive law, associate professor of the department)
Kaliningrad, Kalinigrad, Russian Federation
Kaliningrad, Kalinigrad, Russian Federation
Type:
Article
Pages:
from 40
to 50
Status:
Published
Received:
27.08.2025
Accepted:
29.09.2025
Published:
29.09.2025
Language:
Russian
Keywords:
Animal, cruel treatment of animals, criminal liability, administrative prejudice, legal regulation
Abstract (English):
Introduction. Despite the modernization of legislation in the field of animal protection carried out in 2019-2025, it did not lead to the complete elimination of systemic defects in legal regulation in this area. Administrative liability for violations of standards for the keeping and use of animals introduced in 2023 was not supported by corresponding changes in the criminal law. The current legal uncertainty ignores the preventive potential of the institution of administrative prejudice, which significantly limits the effectiveness of the legal mechanism for animal protection. Methods. In the course of the study, the main results of which are presented in this article, general scientific methods, statistical method, methods of description, abstraction and generalization were used. Results. The study considered various scientific approaches to improving animal protection measures. It is noted that over the past six years, the greatest criminal activity in the area under study was among individuals of two age categories: 30-49 years old, 50 years old and older (61.17% of the total number of those convicted under Article 245 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation; 58.02% of the total number of those convicted under Article 258.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). At the same time, the share of minors convicted is minimal (Article 245 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation - 0.1%; Article 258.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation - 0%). Therefore, scientific discussions about lowering the age of criminal responsibility for cruelty to animals to 14 years do not have sufficient grounds. The study revealed the low efficiency of law enforcement practice in the area under study: the share of convicted persons is only 30% of the number of registered persons who committed crimes of this category. Improving the legal regulation of the protection of wild animals is necessary not only for reasons of humanity, but also to ensure public safety, protect human life and health. The author proposes to introduce administrative liability for the illegal acquisition, keeping and sale of wild animals, as well as criminal liability for persons who repeatedly commit these acts after administrative punishment. Based on the results of the study, the expediency of including in the criminal legislation norms establishing liability for repeated commission of acts provided for in Articles 8.52, 8.53 and 8.54 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation is substantiated. This will bring us closer to the formation of a coordinated mechanism of legal regulation in the area under consideration.
Introduction. Despite the modernization of legislation in the field of animal protection carried out in 2019-2025, it did not lead to the complete elimination of systemic defects in legal regulation in this area. Administrative liability for violations of standards for the keeping and use of animals introduced in 2023 was not supported by corresponding changes in the criminal law. The current legal uncertainty ignores the preventive potential of the institution of administrative prejudice, which significantly limits the effectiveness of the legal mechanism for animal protection. Methods. In the course of the study, the main results of which are presented in this article, general scientific methods, statistical method, methods of description, abstraction and generalization were used. Results. The study considered various scientific approaches to improving animal protection measures. It is noted that over the past six years, the greatest criminal activity in the area under study was among individuals of two age categories: 30-49 years old, 50 years old and older (61.17% of the total number of those convicted under Article 245 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation; 58.02% of the total number of those convicted under Article 258.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). At the same time, the share of minors convicted is minimal (Article 245 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation - 0.1%; Article 258.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation - 0%). Therefore, scientific discussions about lowering the age of criminal responsibility for cruelty to animals to 14 years do not have sufficient grounds. The study revealed the low efficiency of law enforcement practice in the area under study: the share of convicted persons is only 30% of the number of registered persons who committed crimes of this category. Improving the legal regulation of the protection of wild animals is necessary not only for reasons of humanity, but also to ensure public safety, protect human life and health. The author proposes to introduce administrative liability for the illegal acquisition, keeping and sale of wild animals, as well as criminal liability for persons who repeatedly commit these acts after administrative punishment. Based on the results of the study, the expediency of including in the criminal legislation norms establishing liability for repeated commission of acts provided for in Articles 8.52, 8.53 and 8.54 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation is substantiated. This will bring us closer to the formation of a coordinated mechanism of legal regulation in the area under consideration.
Keywords:
Animal, cruel treatment of animals, criminal liability, administrative prejudice, legal regulation
Animal, cruel treatment of animals, criminal liability, administrative prejudice, legal regulation
