The dissertation provides a scientific substantiation of criminal liability for insulting the state symbols of Ukraine and on this basis developed proposals for improving the Criminal Code of Ukraine and the practice of its application.
In particular, it is proved that publicity as a mandatory feature of the objective side of the crime under Part 1 of Art. 338 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, is the circumstances of its commission, as the publicity of the violation of state symbols has always been considered either as a sign of the subject of the crime, or as a sign of socially dangerous act, or as a way of committing a crime.
For the first time the practice of application of part 1 of Art. 338 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine and established the most common ways of violating the State Flag of Ukraine, which are arson, tearing, throwing to the ground, trampling and tearing; The State Emblem of Ukraine and the National Anthem of Ukraine were not subjected to criminal encroachment.
Based on the socio-demographic characteristics of the offender who insults the State Flag of Ukraine, his criminological portrait is formulated: a citizen of Ukraine (100% of cases) male (93.5% of cases) aged 18 to 25 years (45% of cases) ), who had a basic general average (32% of cases) or a full general average (32% of cases), at the time of the crime was able to work, but did not work or study anywhere (74% of cases) and was in a state of intoxication ( 68% of cases).
It is proposed to provide for public insult to the officially established or raised flag or emblem of a foreign state in Part 1 of Art. 338 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine with simultaneous addition of its sanction by punishments in the form of public and corrective works, in h. 2 Art. 338 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine to provide punishment in the form of three years of imprisonment for the same actions made by the official.
Improved the statement that the subject of the crime in the form of abuse of state symbols of Ukraine may belong to any person or state, and therefore for the qualification of the crime under Part 1 of Art. 338 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, it does not matter whether the State Flag of Ukraine or the State Emblem of Ukraine was officially installed in a particular place;
A position has been developed according to which public insult to both the large State Emblem of Ukraine (which does not yet exist) and the small one should be qualified as a crime under Part 1 of Art. 338 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, as the Constitution of Ukraine provides for two state coats of arms: large (the type of which is not fully defined) and small (Sign of the Princely State of Vladimir the Great), with the second being the main element of the first;
The provision on the inexpediency of including criminal offenses against journalists in Section XV of the Special Part of the Criminal Code of Ukraine was supported, as the legislator's unity destroyed the generic object of crimes against the authority of state authorities, local governments and associations of citizens.
The origins and current state of criminal law protection of state symbols of Ukraine are established, on the basis of which the main stages of historical and legal development of criminal liability for encroachment on state symbols in the Ukrainian state are singled out.
The social conditionality of criminal liability for encroachment on the attributes of Ukraine as an important factor of independence due to compliance with such grounds for criminalization as public danger (taking into account the debatable category of "public danger"); typicality and sufficient prevalence, taking into account the crisis of respect for the state and its attributes, especially in the "troubled" parts of Ukraine; requires the influence of criminal law (taking into account the possibilities of criminal justice), and the act itself can be attributed to a criminal offense.
It is argued that the very procedure for using state symbols, according to Art. 20 of the Constitution of Ukraine, should be established by law, however, to date, such a legal act has not yet been adopted (there is only the Law of Ukraine "On the National Anthem of Ukraine"). Therefore, as the procedure for the use of state symbols is still not regulated at the legislative level, the recognition of public relations that ensure this order as an object of abuse of state symbols is considered, at least, contradictory.
It is proved that the subject of a crime in the form of insult to the state symbols of Ukraine can belong to any person or state. Also, to qualify the act under Part 1 of Art. 338 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine does not matter whether the State Flag of Ukraine or the State Emblem of Ukraine was officially established in one place or another.
An improved design of Art. 338 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, which is given in the conclusions of the work.
