NCJ Number
144171
Journal
Crime and Delinquency Volume: 39 Issue: 3 Dated: special issue (July 1993) Pages: 337-354
Date Published
1993
Length
18 pages
Annotation
This article describes the legal framework for defining and controlling the use of police powers of administrative detention in the People's Republic of China and examines the social background in which these punishments are imposed.
Abstract
The Chinese criminal justice system provides for four distinct types of administratively imposed detention: administrative detention, shelter and investigation, re- education through labor, and retention for in-camp employment. Instead of gradually being replaced by criminal detention, administrative detention appears to be increasingly used as a means of maintaining law and order. Most of the legislation has given the police wide discretion in determining whether a person's conduct merits detention. Although processes have been established to review such police actions, they tend to be limited in scope. Thus, persons aggrieved by the administrative action usually have limited capacity to require the review body to investigate or act upon their complaints. However, the legal structures for both defining the scope and conduct of administrative powers and the review of administrative decisions are still developing. 28 references