NCJ Number
165885
Date Published
1997
Length
4 pages
Annotation
This paper reviews the content and reaction to President Yeltsin's Decree "On the Urgent Measures to Defend the Population Against Gangsterism and Other Kinds of Organized Crime" issued on June 14, 1994.
Abstract
In the summer of 1994, the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs (MVD) estimated that 25 percent of the Russian gross national income was derived from organized criminal activities. The MVD also believed that 5,600 criminal groups were involved primarily in capital/money laundering, the drug business, and extortion. President Yeltsin's Decree was a response to this threat to the Russian economy and society. The Decree provides that if there is enough evidence that someone has participated in a criminal group or is under suspicion for having committed serious crimes, the examination can be made, in agreement with the office of the public prosecutor, before the charges are brought against someone, and its results can be used as proof of guilt. In similar cases, the inspection of the suspect's and his relatives' financial activities and transactions can be made. Further, in order to investigate and stop organized crime, the information obtained from the criminal investigation can be used as proof in criminal cases. When a person is suspected and accused of gangsterism and organized crime, such measures as denial of bail and detention of up to 30 days without charges can be instituted. The Decree also states that the confidentiality of banking transactions cannot be an obstacle to the obtaining of data and documents of financial activity, deposits, and operations of accounts that belong to persons and organizations linked to organized crime groups. This Decree precipitated polemical debate in Russia among lawyers, political scientists, and the political elite. Many well-known and respected lawyers support the Decree as a necessary step for the protection of the Russian citizenry, but many believe it violates a number of rights and freedoms of the citizenry. This paper discusses the possible scenarios that may flow from the implementation of the Decree. As of September 1995, the Decree was still law in the Russian Federation; however, because of the continued deterioration of Russia's social and economic infrastructures, the Decree has not produced the desired effects in the effort to counter organized crime.