Public Danger of a Person as a Basis for Applying Compulsory Medical Measures

Abstract

The authors argue that the danger posed by a person, used by the court as a basis for authorizing compulsive medical measures, should be considered to be public danger because this person could commit a new infringement on public relations protected by criminal law. The analysis of the practice of court decisions on compulsory medical measures in 2010–2020 in Tomsk and Novosibirsk Regions is use to develop criteria for determining the content of public danger posed by such a person. These criteria are the features of a publicly dangerous act that has already been committed (its focus on relations protected by criminal law, the degree on harm inflicted on these relations, the number of previously committed identical or similar acts), as well as the symptoms of a mental disorder which testify that a person has got a violent, mercenary or violent-mercenary motivation. The differentiation of compulsory medical measures applied to a person is based on the degree of public danger that this person poses. It is suggested that the probability of a person’s committing a new publicly dangerous act with a violent or mercenary-violent motivation should be viewed as a basis for sending that person to a psychiatric hospital for compulsory treatment. As for using this treatment for persons who are likely to commit new publicly dangerous act with a mercenary motivation, it is suggested that the decision should depend on the regularity of committing actions with such a motivation because the public danger is posed not so much by the gravity of the action as by its repeat character.