Dangerous State of the Individual and the Grounds for Criminal Liability: Doctrinal and Normative Experience

The paper examines the evolution of the concept of criminal liability through the prism of the interaction between fundamental categories of criminal law: crime; the person who committed the crime; and criminal liability. From this perspective, it analyzes the historical development of criminal law doctrines from the classical school to modern conceptions. Particular attention is given to the concept of the dangerous state of the individual, developed by the anthropological and sociological schools. A comparative analysis is conducted of moderate and radical approaches to defining the grounds for applying criminal law measures. The implementation of these concepts in Soviet criminal legislation of the 1920s is analyzed. The study demonstrates the transformation of views on criminal liability during the Soviet period, including the shift from the radical ideas of the sociological school to the traditional understanding of crime as the basis for criminal liability. It is revealed that radical attempts to justify criminal liability based on the potential danger of an individual were rejected as contrary to the idea of human freedom. The results of the study show that in modern Russian criminal law, the sole ground for liability is a socially dangerous act. Information about the offender’s personality is recognized as significant in determining measures of criminal law impact. The conclusions of the work confirm the need for a differentiated approach to the grounds and measures of criminal law impact, where the act is the determining factor and personal characteristics are an additional criterion.