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Chile
Index
The 1980 constitution establishes the independence of
the
judiciary from the executive and legislative arms of
government
(see The
Courts
, ch. 4). The legal system is based on
Roman law.
There is no provision for trial by jury, and heavy
reliance is
placed on police evidence in criminal cases. Judges are
required to
be qualified not only in law but also in criminology and
psychology. There is provision for an annual review by the
Supreme
Court of the fitness of the members of the judiciary to
continue to
hold office.
The Criminal Code of Chile, first drafted in 1870 after
two
unsuccessful attempts, was promulgated in 1874 and
modified in
1928. Its models were the criminal codes of Austria,
Belgium,
France, and Spain. In 1930 extensive modifications were
made,
including the abolition of the death penalty, although
capital
punishment was reinstituted for certain crimes in 1937.
The Criminal Code is divided into general and special
sections.
The former enumerates the general principles of criminal
law
relating to jurisdiction, the concept of crime, attempted
crime,
second party participation in the commission of crime,
habitual
criminals, penalties, circumstances that exclude criminal
responsibility, and circumstances that extinguish criminal
responsibility. The latter section defines specific
offenses and
their appropriate penalties. In this respect, the courts
are
charged with ensuring that the penalty is not merely
appropriate to
the crime but that it is also appropriate to the
criminal's ability
to discharge it.
Crimes are divided into three basic categories: serious
crimes
(crÃmenes), minor crimes (delitos), and
misdemeanors
(faultas). Crime is defined as a voluntary act or
omission
for which the law imposes punishment. Criminal
responsibility is
specifically excluded in cases in which defendants are
insane or
less than ten years of age. The responsibility of minors
ten to
sixteen years of age is also excluded unless it can be
proven that
they acted with full understanding of their acts. Criminal
responsibility is also excluded for violent acts committed
in the
defense of one's own person, property, or rights and in
defense of
those of one's spouse or those of a third party. Also
excluded are
violent acts committed accidentally in the exercise of a
legal act,
violent acts committed in the exercise of public duty,
violent acts
committed under duress or fear, and the killing or
wounding of the
accomplice of an adulterous spouse. Criminal
responsibility is also
excluded in the case of crimes of omission owing to a
legal or
irresistible cause. Suicide and attempted suicide are
specifically
decriminalized.
Data as of March 1994
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