Legal Literacy - In the world of criminal law, the question of the causal relationship between actions and consequences is always a primary focus. This article discusses the doctrine of Causality in Criminal Law. Causality is a fundamental concept that explains the relationship between two events. In the context of criminal law, causality examines whether a person's actions (cause) trigger a specific consequence.
Definition of Causality
Causality is a concept that explains the relationship between two events, where one event (cause) triggers another event (effect).
In simple terms, causality can be understood as the principle that every event has a cause and effect.
Definition of Causality in Criminal Law
Causality in criminal law is the doctrine of the causal relationship between a person's actions and the consequences that arise from them. This doctrine is very important to determine whether a person can be held criminally responsible for an act or not.
In short, causality answers the question:
- Did a person's actions cause a specific consequence?
- To what extent can a person's actions be linked to the resulting consequences?
Example:
- A person (A) stabs the victim (B) with a knife. B subsequently dies. In this case, A can be held criminally liable for the death of B because A's action (stabbing) is the direct cause of B's death.
Regulation of Causality Doctrine
Explicitly, the Criminal Code (KUHP) does not contain specific rules on causality.
However, this concept is implied in several articles of the Criminal Code, such as:
- Article 359 Criminal Code: Maltreatment
- Article 360 of the Criminal Code: Severe Maltreatment
- Article 338 of the Criminal Code: Murder
- Article 187 of the Criminal Code: Arson
These articles use phrases such as "resulting in", "causing", and "giving rise to" which indicate a causal relationship between the action and the consequence.
Theories in the Doctrine of Causality in Criminal Law
The Doctrine of Causality is necessary to determine the existence of an objective relationship between human actions and prohibited consequences. Therefore, the existence of this theory is very important for material criminal acts, and criminal acts qualified by their consequences. This is because in material criminal acts there is a constitutive consequence element, which relates to what is the cause of the consequences that have been determined in the legislation and which party is responsible for the criminal act.
Post Hoc Non Propter Hoc, which means that an event that occurs after another event is not necessarily a result of the preceding event.
To answer these challenges, 3 (three) theories have generally developed, namely:
- Theory conditio sine qua non/theory equivalent.
- Theory adequate (general)
- Individualization theory
Conditio sine qua non Theory
According to Von Buri, a cause is any condition that cannot be eliminated for the consequence to occur, because each of these conditions is a cause, all conditions have the same value. So if even one condition is absent, the consequence will be different. This theory has a weakness because the causal relationship will extend backward without limit/end. However, according to Van Hamel, this theory is the only theory that can be defended, but it must be supplemented with the theory of fault.
Adequate Theory
According to Von Kris, a cause of an event (criminal act) is a condition that, in general, according to the normal course of events, can lead to a certain consequence or event. This theory is based on facts before the event. This adequat theory developed, which subsequently gave rise to two schools of thought within the theory, namely subjective and objective theories. The subjective theory determines that the cause is what the perpetrator knows or imagines can cause the consequence (the criterion is the perpetrator's knowledge). Meanwhile, the objective theory sees the cause as human behavior which, according to experience, is generally reasonable if the act causes a consequence.
Individualization Theory
According to Birk Meyer, from a series of conditions that cannot be eliminated for the consequence to occur, the condition that is the cause is the condition that in certain circumstances is the most dominant in causing the consequence. Karl Binding said that the condition is the most decisive cause. In positive conditions to exceed negative conditions.
Thus, the discussion regarding the doctrine of causality in criminal law. In principle, the doctrine of causality is a concept that explains the relationship between two events, where one event (cause) triggers another event (effect). In criminal law, this doctrine is useful for showing the cause-and-effect relationship between a person's actions and the consequences they cause. This doctrine is very important to determine whether a person can be held criminally responsible for an act or not.
Hope this is useful!
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