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Legal Studies
Reference:

The personality of the offender who commits crimes against people with disabilities and the victimological characteristics of the disabled victim

Chakiev Murat Akhmedovich

Senior Lecturer at the Criminology Department of the St. Petersburg University of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia

198096, Russia, Saint Petersburg, Pilyutov Pilot str., 1

murat.chakiev.76@mail.ru

DOI:

10.25136/2409-7136.2024.3.69803

EDN:

CRIPER

Received:

09-02-2024


Published:

06-04-2024


Abstract: One of the vulnerable and unprotected groups of the population are persons with health problems with persistent disorders of body functions, leading to limitations in life activity and necessitating their social and legal protection. Often such persons are chosen by criminals as victims due to their defenseless or helpless state, which does not allow them to resist or makes their property accessible to third parties. The analysis of criminal cases revealed some personality traits of the criminal who chooses disabled people as victims, and also identified three groups of crimes, the commission of which has the specificity of choosing a victim with physical or mental disabilities. These are crimes of violence, crimes against property and corruption. The personality characteristics of the criminal have common characteristics in the case of crimes committed against such a category of victims in everyday life, or who chose the victim immediately before committing the crime, realizing the impossibility of proper resistance or protection of their property. A thorough analysis of each category will allow us to develop appropriate individual preventive measures. Considering the importance of protecting people with disabilities, the peculiarities of their legal status and health status, we consider it important to develop a separate interdisciplinary area of criminology - victimology of the disabled.


Keywords:

victimology, disability, criminal, victim, victimological characteristics, prevention, focus of crimes, preventive measures, crime prevention, latency

This article is automatically translated.

Introduction.

Based on the scientific approaches of D. A. Shestakov [10], P. A. Kabanov [2] on the importance of studying victims of crime, we highlight the victimology of a disabled person as an interdisciplinary field of criminology that studies the peculiarities of choosing a victim of a person with obvious signs of health disorders with persistent disorder of body functions, which leads to a restriction of vital activity, necessitating social and legal protection. This direction will help to develop scientific hypotheses on the most effective measures to protect people with disabilities – one of the most vulnerable and unprotected segments of the population. We believe that in domestic criminological science, this area of victimology is just beginning to take shape, as evidenced by a small number of studies [6, pp. 46-47; 7; 8], opposed to more active scientific discussions in the works of both domestic and foreign authors devoted to ways to protect persons in a state of helplessness [11; 12; 13; 14].

Undoubtedly, the introduction by the legislator of the helpless state of the victim of a crime into the list of aggravating circumstances by the provisions of the Criminal Law of the RSFSR of October 27, 1960, and later by the provisions of the current Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (hereinafter referred to as the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation), supplemented, including the state of defenselessness, was a significant contribution to the development of constitutional guarantees for the protection of victims from criminal acts encroachments. However, in modern conditions, such a contribution is objectively insufficient. As a result, special attention should be paid to persons who, due to disability, are not able to fully independently ensure their protection in various spheres of public life, including realizing the existing legal status of a disabled person due to the inability to independently collect the necessary documents for conducting an appropriate examination in order to register a disability, but at the same time not indicating their condition despite the need to recognize them as helpless, or at least defenseless. Doubts about the need for a comprehensive study of a population group with a disability, as well as all the grounds for its registration, are dispelled by repeated statements in the scientific community about their importance [2, 3].

Reasoning in more detail, we note that in the scientific community much attention is paid to the category of persons in a helpless or defenseless state, and in this direction the works of I. R. Shikul [12] and O. V. Mikhailovskaya [5] are among the most noteworthy. However, the issue of assigning disabled people of groups 2 and 3 to such persons due to the absence of obvious signs of health restriction is debatable. At the same time, investigative and judicial practice shows that the actions of persons who have committed crimes against persons with disabilities are qualified as committed against a person in a helpless state (Verdict of the St. Petersburg City Court dated 12/29/2017 in case No. 2-4/2017. [Electronic resource] - URL: https://sankt-peterburgsky--spb.sudrf.ru/modules.php?name=sud_delo&srv_num=1&name_op=case&case_id=80287409&case_uid=5fb9dd77-b0d6-4896-aebd-fc835635ff59&delo_id=1540006#).

Without going into the discussion, we express our conviction, confirmed by law enforcement practice, that the characteristics of persons with disabilities in the provisions of the criminal law are insufficient, allowing not only to respect their rights and legitimate interests in the context of crimes committed against them, but also to strengthen their legal guarantees with additional measures to prevent crimes against this category of persons, due to their increased victimization.

The significance of this study is also increased by the total number of disabled people in Russia, indicating a consistently high level of such persons in quantitative terms. So, in 2021, according to the Federal State Statistics Service on the situation of people with disabilities ([Electronic resource] - URL: https://rosstat.gov.ru/folder/13964 ), the number of such amounted to 11,631,000 people, in 2022 – 11,331,000 people, by the end of 2023 – 10,933,000 people. At the same time, given the weak trend towards a decrease in the number of people with disabilities, attention should be paid to the increase in the number of children with disabilities from 2020. Thus, in 2020, the status of "disabled child" was established for 688 children, in 2021 – 704 children, in 2022 – 729 children, in 2023 – 722 children. At the same time, taking into account the ongoing special military operation, it is necessary to predict an increase in the number of people with persistent disorders of body functions resulting from military injuries (contusions, wounds), including those resulting from the suppression of public order violations.

Research.

In order to study the victimization of disabled people, the causes and conditions of crime, and improve preventive measures, along with the personality of the offender himself, it is necessary to study the personality of the disabled victim, his behavior preceding the criminal act, since often the provoking factor in committing a crime against a disabled person is the behavior of the victim himself.    

The study of court decisions freely available on the Internet resource "Judicial and Regulatory acts of the Russian Federation" (hereinafter - SudAkt)  ([Electronic resource] - URL: https://sudact.ru /) and materials of criminal cases, including those that were previously in the personal production of the author of this study, allows us to identify three groups of crimes most often committed against people with disabilities and having the specifics of the criminal's choice of a victim from the category under consideration. For the most part, they are directed against the property of a disabled person, or his life or health, as well as the criminal's selfish use of official powers generated by activities related to the formation of the status of "disabled person" in relation to the category of persons in need of it due to a state of health. Thus, from the analysis of court decisions, it can be concluded that socially dangerous acts of violence, property and corruption are mainly committed against persons with disabilities. Depending on the criminal orientation, the disabled victim is characterized as follows:

1.                 According to violent crimes, the victim is characterized by the presence of disability groups 1, 2, severe physical disabilities, mental disabilities, low social status, a narrow circle of communication, for the most part, people with disabilities aged 14 and over are subject to violence, crimes against sexual integrity are female representatives aged 12-50 years, influenced or dependent on the criminal.     

Unfortunately, crimes committed against this category of victims have the highest latency. This circumstance is due to the physical disabilities or mental illnesses of the victims, which do not allow them to fully realize the illegality of the actions committed against them or to inform law enforcement agencies in a timely manner about the crimes committed.  

2.                 According to crimes of a mercenary property orientation, the victim is aged 18-60 years old, a disabled person of 2, 3 groups, without pronounced signs of health abnormalities, with a regular source of income, with material prosperity, leads an active lifestyle. Disabled persons of the 1st group are less susceptible to property crimes, due to their close circle of communication, being under supervision. Thus, a disabled victim of the 2nd, 3rd groups is more likely to become the object of criminal encroachment, since he has material benefits that can be illegally seized.  

3.                 The third group includes corruption-related crimes against people with disabilities. The victim is subject to crimes of this category when applying for the status of "disabled person", increasing the group or degree of disability.  Victims of such criminal acts can be both persons with disabilities themselves and their legal representatives dealing with issues of registration of the status of "disabled person". Thus, victims of corruption crimes are not only the disabled themselves, but also the persons exercising their social and legal protection [9, pp. 289-290]. One example of a corruption crime is the court decision of the Gudkovsky City Court of the Rostov region against the former head of the Federal state Institution "Main Bureau of Medical and Social Expertise of the Rostov Region" No. 30, who illegally issued conclusions for monetary remuneration, on the basis of which the status of "disabled person" was subsequently issued or disability groups were increased, found guilty of committing crimes provided for in Part 2 of Article 290, Part 3, Article 290, Part 2 of Article 290 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (hereinafter - the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation) [9, p. 290].  

At the same time, cases are not excluded when the disabled themselves, in order to increase the disability group, without having legitimate grounds, commit corruption-related crimes. A good example of the above is the fact that Mr. I. was convicted under Part 3 of Article 30, paragraph "b" of Part 4 of Article 291 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation for attempted bribery of an official in order to extend a previously established disability group (The verdict of the Salsky City Court of the Rostov region in case No. 1-17/2020 1 – 357/2019 from July 9, 2020 G. in case No. 1-17/20. [Electronic resource] - URL: https://sudact.ru/regular/doc/EO2Ele7TRWZZ /).

The classification of socially dangerous acts committed against people with disabilities by criminal orientation is of important theoretical and practical importance, which will allow for a more detailed investigation of the identity of the disabled victim and the offender, identify the determinants of crimes against people with disabilities, outline guidelines for preventive activities aimed at reducing crime against people with disabilities and minimizing latency.         

Back in 2016, P. A. Kabanov, considering the problem of victimization of persons with disabilities, came to the conclusion that disabled people of groups 1 and 2 in most cases were subjected to crimes of a selfish (property) orientation (theft, robbery, fraud, beatings) [3]. Based on the conclusions of the latter and the groups formed by us, reflecting the characteristics of the disabled victim, taking into account the orientation of the crimes, it seems necessary to establish the personality characteristics of the criminal who commits such crimes [4], since in the criminal relationship the victim and the criminal are inseparable.

The public danger of committing crimes against persons with obvious signs of a health disorder with a persistent disorder of bodily functions lies in the fact that the offender realizes that the victim is unable to resist, cannot report the commission of a crime due to ignorance of the illegality of the actions committed, or limited movement or lack of means of communication.  

In the course of a detailed study of this issue, taking into account the study of court sentences that have entered into force, we found that violent crimes are more often committed in everyday life, while persons living with a disabled person or nearby. We include such persons: relatives, acquaintances, neighbors, nurses, close people, educators in homes for the disabled, employees of specialized educational institutions where disabled children are located, etc. It seems that the abovementioned persons are motivated to commit socially dangerous acts against a person with disabilities by base motives and intentions to cause suffering and torment to the victim. One example of the above is a criminal case on a crime qualified as murder committed by burning in the house of a disabled person who, obviously for the guilty person, would not be able to get out of the burning building on his own (Definition of the Judicial Board for Criminal Cases of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation dated April 26, 2023 No. 81-UD23-6SP-A5. ([Electronic resource] - URL:  https://consultant.ru/cons/cgi/online.cgi?req=home&rnd=oGprw).

Another example that we have identified in the course of the study is the criminal case on charges of B., G., K., K., etc., of committing mercenary crimes of property and violent orientation. The case materials confirmed the fact that the accused committed a crime, despite the availability of information that the victim is disabled, which characterizes the personality of each of the criminals with special cynicism, low level of moral qualities, greed and greed (Verdict of the St. Petersburg City Court dated 12/29/2017 in case No. 2-4/2017. ([Electronic resource] - URL: https://sankt-peterburgsky--spb.sudrf.ru/modules.php?name=sud_delo&srv_num=1&name_op=case&case_id=80287409&case_uid=5fb9dd77-b0d6-4896-aebd-fc835635ff59&delo_id=1540006#).

  However, sometimes crimes against the personality of a disabled person are committed with other motives. These include, for example, murder out of compassion. Therefore, it becomes obvious and echoes D. J.'s conviction. Gostkova [1, p. 130] the need to establish in detail the motive for the commission of a crime, since in order to increase the objectivity of the final decision in a criminal case, the appointment of a fair punishment, they must be taken into account by the court. The motives that prompted the commission of a crime are also of high importance when choosing appropriate measures for individual prevention.  For example, they can be taken into account not only as an aggravating, but also as a mitigating circumstance (in the case of committing a crime against the background of severe moral exhaustion of the perpetrator caused by constant patient care). The need to identify all the circumstances of the commission of crimes against persons with disabilities was drawn to the attention of the Judicial Board for Criminal Cases of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation (Ruling No. 127-UD21-22-A3 dated January 18, 2022) ([Electronic resource] - URL: https://consultant.ru/cons/cgi/online.cgi?req=doc&base=ARB&n=699605#xrF3D5UO4H3z8Y1g1 ).

So, talking about domestic violence against people with disabilities, we have identified the following general characteristics of the offender's personality – these are people who are surrounded by a disabled person (close relatives, relatives, close people, employees of the institution where the disabled person is being treated or trained, guardians, teachers of specialized institutions, social workers), who are characterized by short temper, irritability aggressive response to the behavior or requests of a disabled person, they have a low level of performance of their assumed responsibilities for protection and assistance in maintaining vital functions. At the same time, the number of violent acts committed is significantly exceeded if a disabled person has mental disabilities, which is associated with irritability and short temper of the perpetrators to manifest violations of the emotional and volitional sphere. At the same time, in conditions when the victim cannot independently report the crimes committed against him, the repetition of such violent actions and their continuing nature are characteristic.

If a violent crime is not related to domestic violence, then in this case a disabled person is chosen as a victim by a person who, as a rule, has previously been convicted of committing violent crimes, or committed for hooligan motives in order to assert himself, for the sake of popularity or to increase the rating on social networks.

When analyzing criminal cases of crimes of a selfish (property) orientation, there are also features of the criminal's personality, depending on whether the perpetrator is included in the circle of communication of a disabled person, or intent arises from a person who saw the victim for the first time and decided to take advantage of his condition, which in some cases may indicate helplessness or defenselessness.

If this is a close and familiar person with a disability, then the age of the offender can be from 14 to 40 years old. A person has access to the place of residence of a disabled person and provides him with social services, helps in life activities. Basically, the intent of such persons is aimed at stealing benefits, pensions, social benefits, rights to real estate of a disabled person. Such people have a persistent sense of impunity for the crime committed, since they know that the victim cannot declare the crime committed due to a position dependent on the culprit or insufficient awareness of the illegality of the actions committed.

In other crimes of a property orientation, the age from 16 to 40 years was revealed, mainly men who use the physical or mental disabilities of the victim as a way to simplify the achievement of selfish goals. Such persons are characterized by a sense of impunity, a low level of legal awareness, they have previously been convicted of committing property or violent crimes, abuse alcoholic beverages, do not have stable earnings, are classified as a group of people with a low social level.

In the prevention of crimes of this orientation, individual work should also be based on who committed the crime (by a person from the inner circle or the victim was chosen randomly). We consider it advisable to provide additional guarantees and increased control over the expenditure of benefits, social benefits and pensions by persons in whose custody or maintenance a disabled person is. In the second situation, we consider it important to strengthen the protection of the property of the disabled, especially if this is related to the technical means of rehabilitation of the disabled (for example, wheelchairs, guide dogs, prostheses, etc.)

Thus, when developing preventive measures for crimes of the above-mentioned groups, it is necessary to take into account the specifics of crimes committed on domestic grounds and under other circumstances, paying great attention to the psychological characteristics of persons involved in helping a disabled person, especially those with mental disabilities, as well as causing pain and suffering from hooligan motives and increasing the rating on social networks. As a result, it seems advisable to supplement both the provisions of Article 213 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation and other crimes of violent and property orientation with a qualifying sign in the form of committing a crime against a disabled person, as well as to provide additional protection against attacks on persons directly providing the services of an assistant (assistant) or personal assistance to persons with disabilities in movement, orientation or communication, expanding the list of circumstances aggravating punishment (part 1.1 of Article 63 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation).

In criminal cases of corruption orientation, the peculiarity of some personal characteristics of criminals has been revealed. As a rule, these are men with higher education, employees of medical organizations, specialists of expert bureaus who have the right to recognize a person as disabled or determine, in accordance with the procedure established by the legislation of the Russian Federation, the right to appropriate social protection measures, including rehabilitation, seeking profit at the expense of funds received for "assistance" or a statement of the legality of the basis for the status "disabled." Such persons have distorted moral principles, lack moral norms, a disdainful attitude towards criminal law prohibitions prevails in their behavior, and a sense of impunity for committed acts is characteristic. Therefore, they commit such crimes repeatedly both against persons who have the right to receive disability, and persons who, although not having such a right, expect to increase material payments by providing knowingly false documents indicating the presence or past illnesses that limit vital activity and cause the need for social protection.

Further, attention should be paid to the category of victims of crimes of this orientation from among military personnel who were injured as a result of service and trying to register a disability, the need for which is dictated by the modern realities of events taking place in the territories annexed to the Russian Federation and in the immediate vicinity. However, the recording of corruption-related crimes against this group of disabled people is not the subject of accounting by the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation (Review of some corruption-related offenses related to receiving (giving) bribes in the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation for five months of 2019. The official website of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation. [Electronic resource] - URL: https://stat.mil.ru/fnti-corruption/violations.htm ), which seems to be an unjustified omission.

As preventive measures to prevent crimes against a serviceman who needs to be assigned the status of a disabled person due to the circumstances that have happened to him, in our opinion, individual counseling of the injured person, as well as adult members of his family, should be introduced, explaining the specifics of disability registration, the specifics of the impact of the injury on the behavior of a person and ways to accept such a condition by relatives, the procedure for providing assistance to him and warning about the possible risks of becoming a victim of illegal behavior with an explanation of the algorithm of actions or behavior that allows timely prevention of such a development of events. In the case of moral exhaustion, it is necessary to detail the procedure for receiving psychological assistance both by the serviceman himself and his relatives.

Conclusions.

Thus, the recognition of an independent intersectoral direction of victimology – "victimology of the disabled", will not only identify the most vulnerable category of persons, but also determine the characteristics of the criminal's personality. Taking into account the analysis of criminal cases and the results of the author's research, three of the most common groups of crimes can be identified, in which the perpetrator chooses the victim precisely taking into account the limitation of the state of health, which does not allow him to resist properly or promptly inform law enforcement agencies about socially dangerous acts committed (committed) against them. These groups include violent, mercenary (property) and corruption-related crimes. Each of these groups has its own subgroups related to the peculiarities of communicating with a disabled person, being with him, or dictated by the spontaneity of making a decision due to the awareness of the lack of proper resistance.

The identification of groups of criminal orientation committed against persons with disabilities, the study of the identity of the victim and the perpetrator, will allow to identify the determinants of crime against persons with disabilities, outline guidelines for preventive work aimed at reducing the number of criminal assaults committed, minimize the latency of crimes committed against the category in question. In order to ensure proper legal protection for victims with disabilities, we consider it significant and necessary to expand the category of persons in a helpless or defenseless state in the criminal and criminal procedure law, supplementing disabled people of all groups, when establishing the fact that it is impossible to independently realize their needs and protect themselves, as well as resist the actions of the perpetrator.

References
1. Goskova, D. Zh. (2023). Helplessness of the victim: theoretical views and law enforcement practice. Jurisprudence, 7(2), 130.
2. Kabanov, P.A. (2017). Modern criminological victimology: trends and some prospects for development. Victimology, 3(13), 5-15.
3. Kabanov, P.A. (2016). Criminal victimization of persons with disabilities (disabled people of the first and second groups): statistical measurement 2014-2015. Legal research, 6, 1-11. doi:10.7256/2409-7136.2016.6.19421 Retrieved from https://nbpublish.com/library_read_article.php?id=1942
4. Kochin, A.A., & Kharlamov, V.S. (2021). Modern victimological portrait of an individual who has suffered from a crime. Russian investigator, 12, 68-72.
5. Mikhailovskaya, O.V. (2021). Criminal legal protection of a person in a helpless state. Moscow: Unity-Dana Publishing House, LLC.
6. Mullakhmetova, N.E. (2017). Victims of crimes with mental disorders: victimological and criminal procedural aspects. Victimology, 2(12), 46-50.
7. Chakiev, M.A. (2023). Analysis of foreign experience in preventing crime against people with disabilities. Scientific support for the detection, investigation and prevention of crimes: Materials of the All-Russian scientific and practical conference for the anniversary of Doctor of Law, Professor, Honored Lawyer of the Russian Federation Alexander Alekseevich Protasevich, Irkutsk, December 15, 2022. Irkutsk: Baikal State University, 221-226.
8. Chakiev, M.A. (2023). Disability as a prerequisite for committing crimes of a corruption nature. Internal affairs bodies in the system of combating corruption crime: Materials of an intradepartmental round table, St. Petersburg, December 08, 2023. St. Petersburg: St. Petersburg University of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia, 286-292.
9. Chakiev, M.A. (2023). Comparative legal analysis of foreign experience in preventing crime against persons with disabilities. Bulletin of the Belgorod Legal Institute of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia named after I.D. Putilin, 4, 100-106.
10. Shestakov, D.A. (2011). Introduction to Criminology of Law. St. Petersburg: Legal Center Press.
11. Shikula, I.R. (2017). Problematic issues of liability for violent criminal attacks against persons in a helpless state in the criminal legislation of foreign countries. International criminal law and international justice, 2, 22-25.
12. Shikula, I. R. (2016). Theoretical and practical problems of defining the concept of “helpless state” in Russian criminal law. Bulletin of the Kazan Legal Institute of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia, 3(25), 78-81.
13. Scott, S. D., Hirschinger, L. E., Cox, K. R., et al. (2009). The natural history of recovery for the health care provider «second victim» after adverse patient events. Qual Saf Health Care, 18, 325-330.
14. Seeley, K., Tombari, M.L., Bennett, L.J., & Dunkle, J.B. (2009). Peer Victimization in Schools: A Set of Quantitative and Qualitative Studies of the Connections Among Peer Victimization, School Engagement, Truancy, School Achievement, and Other Outcomes. National Center for School Engagement, 1, 13-46.

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The list of publisher reviewers can be found here.

The subject of the research in the article submitted for review is, as its name implies, the victimological characteristics of a disabled victim and the personality of a criminal who commits crimes against people with disabilities. The title of the work needs to be adjusted: the article deals with the characterization of the personality not only of the disabled victim, but also of the perpetrator, therefore it is incorrect to combine these two characteristics into one and call it victimological. As a variant of the name of the work, the following can be proposed: "A victimological portrait of a disabled person and its connection with the personality characteristic of a criminal who commits crimes against disabled people." The methodology of the research is not disclosed in the text of the article. The relevance of the research topic chosen by the author is beyond doubt and is justified by him as follows: "We believe that one of the areas of victimology should be the victimology of a disabled person, by which we understand the intersectoral direction of criminology, supporting in this case D. A. Shestakov [7], studying the features of choosing a victim, a person with obvious signs of a health disorder with a persistent disorder of body functions which leads to a restriction of vital activity and causes the need for social and legal protection. This direction will help to develop the most effective measures to protect people with disabilities – one of the vulnerable and unprotected segments of the population. After all, this area of victimology is just beginning to take shape [4, pp. 46-47; 5; 6], despite more active scientific research and ways to protect people with physical and mental disabilities in the works of foreign authors [8; 9; 10]. Special attention should be paid to persons who, due to life limitations, are not able to fully independently ensure their protection and realize the existing legal status of a disabled person, including due to the inability to independently collect the necessary documents for conducting an appropriate examination and obtaining official status of a disabled person. The importance and necessity of a comprehensive study of this population group has been repeatedly expressed by scientists [2]. The total number of officially registered disabled people in Russia in 2021, according to the Federal State Statistics Service on the situation of disabled people (URL: https://rosstat.gov.ru/folder/13964 ), amounted to 11,631,000 people, in 2022 – 11,331,000 people, in 2023 - 10,933,000 people. Despite the current trend towards a decrease in the number of disabled people, it should be noted that since 2020 there has been an increase in the number of disabled children. Thus, in 2020, the status of a disabled child was established for 688 children, in 2021 – 704 children, in 2022 – 729 children, in 2023 – 722 children. Taking into account the ongoing special military operation, it is possible to predict an increase in the number of people who have suffered a persistent disorder of body functions as a result of military injuries, suppression of violations of public order (contusions, wounds, injuries)." The scientific novelty of the work is manifested in a number of conclusions of the author: "The study of materials of criminal cases and court reviews allows us to identify three groups of crimes most often committed against people with disabilities and having the specifics of choosing a victim by a criminal from the category under consideration. They are directed against the property of a disabled person, or his life or health, or at the selfish use of official powers in their interests, i.e. basically these are acts of property, violent and corrupt orientation"; " Depending on the criminal orientation of the perpetrators, the disabled victim is characterized by: 1. For crimes of a selfish orientation, the victim is aged 18-60 years, a disabled person of 2-3 groups, without pronounced signs of health abnormalities, with a regular source of income, with material prosperity. ... 2. For crimes of a violent orientation, the victim is characterized by the presence of disability of 1, 2 groups, pronounced physical disabilities, mental disabilities, low social status, a narrow circle for example, the majority of people with disabilities aged 14 and over are subject to violence, female representatives aged 12-50 years who are dependent on the perpetrator are subjected to crimes against sexual integrity," etc. Thus, the article makes a definite contribution to the development of domestic legal science and deserves the attention of potential readers. The scientific style of the research is fully sustained by the author. The structure of the work is quite logical. In the introductory part of the article, the author substantiates the relevance of his chosen research topic. In the main part of the work, the scientist proposes a victimological characterization of the personality of a disabled person, after which he considers a criminological portrait of a criminal who commits crimes against people with disabilities. The author also suggests preventive measures to reduce the number of crimes committed against people with disabilities, as well as reduce the latency of the group of crimes under consideration. The final part of the article contains conclusions based on the results of the study. The content of the article corresponds to its title, but is not without some drawbacks. So, the author writes: "One of the directions of victimology, we believe, should be the victimology of a disabled person, by which we understand the intersectoral direction of criminology, supporting in this case D. A. Shestakov [7], studying the features of choosing a victim, a person with obvious signs of a health disorder with a persistent disorder of bodily functions, leading to a restriction of vital activity and causing the need for social and legal protection" - this complex sentence must be divided into simple ones, which will avoid stylistic errors that obscure its meaning. Categorical statements in the introductory part of the article should be avoided (scientific hypotheses may be proposed in it). The definition of the concept of "victimology of a disabled person" should be isolated in a separate sentence and attention should be paid to the coordination of words. The scientist writes: "To study the victimization of disabled people, the causes and conditions of crime, to improve preventive measures, along with the personality of the offender himself, it is necessary to study the personality of the disabled victim, his behavior preceding the criminal act" - the third and fourth commas are superfluous; "preceding". The author indicates: "Often, the reasons for the commission of a crime are the behavior of the victim himself, which provokes the guilty person to commit an illegal act." Of course, the victim's behavior can provoke the perpetrator (i.e. become a condition for committing a crime), but in itself it cannot be the cause of it. The following wording of the sentence would be more correct: "Often the provoking factor in committing a crime is the behavior of the victim himself." The scientist notes: "Studying the materials of criminal cases and court reviews allows us to identify three groups of crimes most often committed against people with disabilities and having the specifics of choosing a victim by a criminal from the category under consideration. They are directed against the property of a disabled person, or his life or health, or at the selfish use of official powers in their own interests, i.e. basically these are acts of property, violent and corrupt orientation" - there is no link to information sources (reviews of judicial practice, etc.). The author writes: "Victims of such criminal acts can be both persons with disabilities themselves and their legal representatives dealing with issues of registration of the status of "disabled" to persons who, due to their physical, mental characteristics, or underage age, cannot do this on their own" - "or due to underage age" (the word is omitted).
The scientist notes: "In general, in domestic violence against people with disabilities, we have identified common characteristics of the offender's personality: persons surrounded by a disabled person (close relatives, relatives, close persons, employees of the institution where the disabled person is being treated or trained, guardians, teachers of specialized institutions, social workers), who are characterized by short temper, irritability, aggressive response to the behavior or requests of a disabled person, they have a low level of performance of their assumed responsibilities for protection and assistance in maintaining vital functions. At the same time, the number of violent acts committed is significantly higher if a disabled person has mental disabilities than physical ones. This is due to the irritability and short temper of those responsible for the manifested violations of the emotional and volitional sphere" - there are no references to the empirical base on the basis of which the author came to these conclusions. Any provisions of the work must be reasoned. The author proposes amendments to criminal legislation, including "... by including in Article 213 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation a qualifying feature "in relation to a defenseless or helpless person, including a disabled person." At the same time, definitions of the concepts of "defenseless person" and "helpless person" are not proposed. However, this is important in order to identify such persons. Initials are placed before the author's surname. The principle of uniformity must be observed in the design of the work. Anglicisms should be avoided if there are analogous words in the Russian language ("HYIP"). The article needs careful proofreading with the involvement of a specialist philologist! There are many typos, spelling, punctuation, and stylistic errors in it (the list of typos and errors given in the review is not exhaustive). The bibliography of the study is presented by 12 sources (monograph and scientific articles), including in English. From a formal point of view, this is quite enough, but some provisions of the work need to be clarified. There is no appeal to opponents, which is unacceptable for a scientific article. The author does not enter into a scientific discussion with specific scientists; the provisions of the work are not always justified to the proper extent. There are conclusions based on the results of the study ("Thus, the recognition of an independent intersectoral direction of victimology – "victimology of the disabled", will not only identify the most vulnerable category of persons, but also determine the characteristics of the criminal's personality. Taking into account the analysis of available criminal cases and statistical data on the state of crime, three of the most common types of crimes can be identified, in which the offender chooses the victim precisely because of her helpless and defenseless state, which does not allow giving due resistance or timely reporting to law enforcement agencies about socially dangerous acts committed against them. These are crimes of violent, mercenary (property) and corruption orientation. Each of these groups has its own subgroups related to the peculiarities of communicating with a disabled person, being with him, or dictated by the spontaneity of making a decision due to the awareness of the lack of proper resistance. A thorough study of the identity of the victim and the perpetrator will allow us to develop the most effective preventive measures that not only reduce the number of crimes committed against people with disabilities, but also reduce the latency of the group of crimes under consideration"), have the properties of reliability and validity, and certainly deserve the attention of the scientific community, but need stylistic correction. So, the author writes: "Taking into account the analysis of available criminal cases and statistical data on the state of crime, three of the most common types of crimes can be identified, in which the perpetrator chooses the victim precisely because of her helpless and defenseless state, which does not allow giving due resistance or timely reporting to law enforcement agencies about socially dangerous acts committed against them" - the term "the directions of crimes" is not legal. It is more correct to talk about groups of crimes. Also, resistance is "not given", but "turns out". The interest of the readership in the article submitted for review can be shown primarily by specialists in the field of criminal law, criminology, victimology, provided that it is finalized: clarifying the title of the work, disclosing the research methodology, clarifying and specifying certain provisions of the work, introducing elements of discussion, eliminating violations in the design of the article.

Second Peer Review

Peer reviewers' evaluations remain confidential and are not disclosed to the public. Only external reviews, authorized for publication by the article's author(s), are made public. Typically, these final reviews are conducted after the manuscript's revision. Adhering to our double-blind review policy, the reviewer's identity is kept confidential.
The list of publisher reviewers can be found here.

The subject of the study. In the peer-reviewed article "The identity of a criminal who commits crimes against persons with disabilities and the victimological characteristics of a disabled victim", the subject of the study is the norms of criminal law that classify crimes against persons with disabilities as socially dangerous acts against a socially unprotected category of persons. The author also pays attention to the issue of the provoking factor of committing a crime against a disabled person – this is the behavior of the victim himself. Research methodology. In the course of writing the article, modern research methods were used: general scientific and private. The methodological apparatus consists of the following dialectical methods of scientific cognition: abstraction, induction, deduction, hypothesis, analogy, synthesis, historical, theoretical-prognostic, formal-legal, systemic-structural, legal modeling, and also, it can be noted the use of typology, classification, systematization and generalization. The relevance of research. The relevance of the topic of the article is beyond doubt. People with disabilities are a less socially protected category of citizens. In victimology, questions have repeatedly been raised and are being raised about this type of victim(s) from crime as disabled people. Scientists have paid special attention to the fact that some people, due to life limitations, are not able to fully independently provide their protection and realize their legal status as a "disabled person", including due to the inability to independently collect the necessary documents for an appropriate examination in order to properly formalize it. The physical and mental health of individual citizens makes them "easy prey" for criminals. The author correctly identified the problem: "... In order to study the victimization of disabled people, the causes and conditions of crime, and improve preventive measures, along with the personality of the offender himself, it is necessary to study the personality of the disabled victim, his behavior preceding the criminal act." The ambiguity and inconsistency of legal norms and their official interpretation requires additional doctrinal developments on this issue in order to improve legislation and practice of its application. Scientific novelty. Without questioning the importance of previous scientific research, which served as the theoretical basis for this work, nevertheless, it can be noted that this article also contains some noteworthy provisions that can be assessed as a contribution to domestic science, for example: "...Unfortunately, the crimes committed against this category of victims are among the most latent. This circumstance is due to the physical disabilities or mental illnesses of the victims, which do not allow them to fully realize the illegality of the actions committed against them or to inform law enforcement agencies in a timely manner about the crimes committed." However, the author's position on the issues raised by him is not presented in its completed form. Thus, the author left the analysis of the types of crimes against persons with disabilities without any conclusions that are important for improving criminal legislation and law enforcement practice. What is the practical significance of the classification of crimes against persons with disabilities presented by the author? Style, structure, content. In general, the article is written in a scientific style using special terminology. The content of the article corresponds to its title. The requirements for the volume of the article are met. It seems inappropriate to refer in the text of the article to the author's own dissertation research. As comments, we can note: 1. The introduction to the article needs to be finalized, since it does not meet the requirements for this part of the scientific article. 2. The final part of the article should be finalized, specifically formulate conclusions on the main results of the study. To present your own reasoned position on the identified issues. 3. We believe that abbreviations need to be clarified at the first mention. 4. There are grammatical (namely, punctuation) errors in the text, in particular, the rules of punctuation are not always followed. Inconsistency of endings in words in sentences is noted (for example, "... that disabled people of the 1st, 2nd groups were mostly exposed to ...", etc.). 5. In the text, when referring to the opinions of other authors, the correct mention of the full name is not everywhere, for example: Mikhailovskaya (without specifying the initial). The comments are of a disposable nature and do not detract from the results of the work done by the author. Bibliography. The author has used a sufficient number of doctrinal sources, including publications of recent years. References to sources are designed in compliance with the requirements of the bibliographic GOST. Appeal to opponents. The author provides different points of view on certain aspects of the topic he declared. Conclusions, the interest of the readership. The article submitted for review "The identity of a criminal who commits crimes against persons with disabilities and the victimological characteristics of a disabled victim" can be recommended for publication with the condition of its completion, since, although it generally meets the requirements for scientific articles of the journal "Legal Research", there are some comments. A publication on this topic could be of interest to a wide readership, primarily specialists in the field of criminal law, criminology, victimology, and also could be useful for teachers and students of law schools and faculties.

Third Peer Review

Peer reviewers' evaluations remain confidential and are not disclosed to the public. Only external reviews, authorized for publication by the article's author(s), are made public. Typically, these final reviews are conducted after the manuscript's revision. Adhering to our double-blind review policy, the reviewer's identity is kept confidential.
The list of publisher reviewers can be found here.

A REVIEW of an article on the topic "The identity of a criminal who commits crimes against people with disabilities and the victimological characteristics of a disabled victim". The subject of the study. The article proposed for review is devoted to topical issues of criminological characteristics of crimes, the victims of which are victims with disabilities, to which the author of the article refers, first of all, "a person with obvious signs of a health disorder with a persistent disorder of bodily functions." The author reveals the fact that the stated issue has not been properly considered in science, and also offers a solution to some theoretical problems. The subject of the study is, first of all, the provisions of legislation, materials of judicial practice, and opinions of scientists. Research methodology. The purpose of the study is not stated directly in the article. At the same time, it can be clearly understood from the title and content of the work. The purpose can be designated as the consideration and resolution of certain problematic aspects of the question of the characteristics of the personality of a criminal who commits crimes against persons with disabilities, as well as the victimological characteristics of a disabled victim. Based on the set goals and objectives, the author has chosen the methodological basis of the study. In particular, the author uses a set of general scientific methods of cognition: analysis, synthesis, analogy, deduction, induction, and others. In particular, the methods of analysis and synthesis made it possible to summarize and share the conclusions of various scientific approaches to the proposed topic, as well as draw specific conclusions from the materials of judicial practice. The most important role was played by special legal methods. In particular, the author actively applied the formal legal method, which made it possible to analyze and interpret the norms of current legislation (first of all, the norms of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). For example, the following conclusion of the author: "So, when developing preventive measures for crimes of the above groups, it is necessary to take into account the specifics of crimes committed on domestic grounds and under other circumstances, paying great attention to the psychological characteristics of persons involved in helping a disabled person, especially those with mental disabilities, as well as causing pain and suffering from hooligan motives and improving the rating on social media. As a result, it seems advisable to supplement both the provisions of Article 213 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation and other crimes of violent and property orientation with a qualifying sign in the form of committing a crime against a disabled person, as well as to provide additional protection against attacks on persons directly providing the services of an assistant (assistant) or personal assistance to persons with disabilities in movement, orientation or communication, by expanding the list of circumstances aggravating punishment (Part 1.1 of Article 63 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation)." The possibilities of an empirical research method related to the study of judicial practice materials should be positively assessed. In particular, we note the following conclusion of the author: "the abovementioned persons are motivated to commit socially dangerous acts against a person with disabilities by base motives and intentions to cause suffering and torment to the victim. One example of the above is a criminal case on a crime qualified as murder committed by burning in the house of a disabled person who, obviously for the guilty person, would not be able to get out of the burning building on his own (Definition of the Judicial Board for Criminal Cases of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation dated April 26, 2023 No. 81-UD23-6SP-A5. ([Electronic resource] - URL: https://consultant.ru/cons/cgi/online.cgi?req=home&rnd=oGprw )". Thus, the methodology chosen by the author is fully adequate to the purpose of the study, allows you to study all aspects of the topic in its entirety. Relevance. The relevance of the stated issues is beyond doubt. There are both theoretical and practical aspects of the significance of the proposed topic. From the point of view of theory, the topic of criminological characteristics of crimes, the victims of which are victims with disabilities, is complex and ambiguous. There are few such studies in criminology, but they are necessary for a complete understanding of this category of crimes and the mechanisms of their disclosure. It is difficult to argue with the author of the article that "Without any doubt, the introduction by the legislator of the helpless state of the victim of a crime into the list of aggravating circumstances by the provisions of the Criminal Law of the RSFSR of October 27, 1960, later by the provisions of the current Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (hereinafter – the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation), supplemented, including the state of defenselessness, was a significant contribution to the development of constitutional guarantees for the protection of victims from criminal encroachments. However, in modern conditions, such a contribution is objectively insufficient. As a result, special attention should be paid to persons who, due to disability, are not able to fully independently ensure their protection in various spheres of public life, including realizing the existing legal status of a disabled person due to the inability to independently collect the necessary documents for conducting an appropriate examination in order to register a disability, but at the same time not indicating their condition despite the need to recognize them as helpless, or at least defenseless. Doubts about the need for a comprehensive study of a population group with a disability, as well as all the grounds for its registration, are dispelled by repeated statements in the scientific community about their importance." Thus, scientific research in the proposed field should only be welcomed. Scientific novelty. The scientific novelty of the proposed article is beyond doubt. Firstly, it is expressed in the author's specific conclusions. Among them, for example, is the following conclusion: "recognition of an independent intersectoral area of victimology – the "victimology of the disabled", will not only identify the most vulnerable category of persons, but also determine the characteristics of the criminal's personality. Taking into account the analysis of criminal cases and the results of the author's research, three of the most common groups of crimes can be identified, in which the perpetrator chooses the victim precisely taking into account the limitation of the state of health, which does not allow him to resist properly or promptly inform law enforcement agencies about socially dangerous acts committed (committed) against them. These groups include violent, mercenary (property) and corruption-related crimes. Each of these groups has its own subgroups related to the peculiarities of communicating with a disabled person, being with him, or dictated by the spontaneity of making a decision due to the awareness of the lack of proper resistance." These and other theoretical conclusions can be used in further scientific research. Secondly, the author has proposed ideas about preventive measures. Thus, the following author's conclusion is important: "The identification of criminal groups committed against persons with disabilities, the study of the identity of the victim and the perpetrator, will identify the determinants of crime against persons with disabilities, outline guidelines for preventive work aimed at reducing the number of criminal assaults committed, minimize the latency of crimes committed against the category in question. In order to ensure proper legal protection for victims with disabilities, we consider it significant and necessary to expand the category of persons in a helpless or defenseless state in the criminal and criminal procedure law, supplementing disabled people of all groups, when establishing the fact that it is impossible to independently realize their needs and protect themselves, as well as resist the actions of the perpetrator." The above conclusion may be relevant and useful in practical activities. Thus, the materials of the article may be of particular interest to the scientific community in terms of contributing to the development of science. Style, structure, content. The subject of the article corresponds to the specialization of the journal "Legal Studies", as it is devoted to legal problems related to the criminological characteristics of crimes.
The content of the article fully corresponds to the title, since the author considered the stated problems and achieved the research goal. The quality of the presentation of the study and its results should be recognized as fully positive. The subject, objectives, methodology and main results of the study follow directly from the text of the article. The design of the work generally meets the requirements for this kind of work. No significant violations of these requirements were found. Bibliography. The quality of the literature used should be highly appreciated. The author actively uses the literature presented by authors from Russia and abroad (Goskova D.J., Kabanov P.A., Kochin A.A., Kharlamov V.S., Scott S.D., Hirschinger L.E., Cox K.R. and others). Many of the cited scientists are recognized scientists in the field of criminology. I would like to note the author's use of a large number of materials of judicial practice, which made it possible to give the study a law enforcement orientation. Thus, the works of the above authors correspond to the research topic, have a sign of sufficiency, and contribute to the disclosure of various aspects of the topic. Appeal to opponents. The author conducted a serious analysis of the current state of the problem under study. All quotes from scientists are accompanied by author's comments. That is, the author shows different points of view on the problem and tries to argue for a more correct one in his opinion. Conclusions, the interest of the readership. The conclusions are fully logical, as they are obtained using a generally accepted methodology. The article may be of interest to the readership in terms of the systematic positions of the author in relation to the problematic points stated by the author. Based on the above, summing up all the positive and negative sides of the article, "I recommend publishing"