Antragsdelikt

In the criminal law of some countries with a civil law system, an ''Antragsdelikt'' (plural ''Antragsdelikte'') is a category of offense which cannot be prosecuted without a complaint by the victim. The same concept has been adopted in Japanese law under the name ''shinkokuzai'' ( ja, 親告罪, sc=Hani), in South Korean law under the name ''chingojoe'' ( ko, 친고죄), in the law of Taiwan (both during the early Republic period and post-1949 Taiwan) using various terms, in Dutch law under the name ''klachtdelict'', in Belgian law under the name ''klachtmisdrijf/crime de plainte'', and in Indonesian law under the name ''delik aduan''.

Basic definition

The term comes from the German language words ''Antrag'' (petition) and ''Delikt'' (offense, from Latin "dēlictum"). ''Antragsdelikte'' are similar to (but not identical) in definition to ''Ermächtigungsdelikte''. For example, in Austria the latter category includes such offenses as trespassing or fraud committed in an emergency situation. The victim's consent is required for investigation of an ''Antragsdelikt'' to begin; no such consent is required in the case of an ''Ermächtigunsdelikt'', though the prosecutor will inform the victim. In both cases, actual prosecution of the offense will only proceed with the consent of the victim. Another term is ''Privatklagedelikte'


''Antragsdelikt'' is somewhat analogous to the concept of a compoundable offense in Thai law, though different from that synonymous term in Malaysian law or Singaporean law.

Germany

The German Criminal Code (Strafgesetzbuch) lists the following as offenses which will only be prosecuted on request:
*Unlawful entry (§ 123
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*Violation of instructions during supervision of conduct (
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*Defamation (§ 185
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*Violation of privacy and personal secrets (
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* Domestic theft (§ 247
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*Taking without owner's consent (§ 248b
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* Energy theft (§ 248c
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*Unlawfully offering an advantage (
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*Thwarting of distraint (§ 288
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*Unlawful retaking of pawned goods (§ 289
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*Poaching of fish (§ 293
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*Acts committed under intoxication where the intoxication causes diminished responsibility (§ 323a
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*Breach of fiscal secrecy (
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In addition, the German Criminal Code states that the following offences will be prosecuted on the request of the victim or in the case of "special public interest":
*Statutory rape, if the victim is between 14 and 16 years old and the offender older than 21 (§ 182
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*Exhibitionism (§ 183
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*Violation of privacy and personal secrets (
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*Battery (§ 223
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*Negligent battery (
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*Child abduction (§ 235
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*Stalking (§ 238
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*Theft and embezzlement of low-value items (
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*Corruption and bribery in business transactions (
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*Property damage (§ 303
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*Unlawful alteration of data (
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*Computer sabotage (
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German law also has a converse category of crimes which require prosecution in any case, no matter if there is a complainant or not. These offenses, or "ex officio crimes", are called "Offizialdelikte" in German ''(Delikte'' is the plural).

Japan

The concept of ''shinkokuzai'' first entered into Japanese law in the early Meiji period. The 1870 criminal code , though it did not use the term directly, stated that the prosecution of a number of violent offenses between husband and wife depended on a complaint by the person in question. The phrase used to express this condition, '' mizukara tsugeru wo mate'', is probably the origin of the modern term ''shinkokuzai''; ''mizukara tsugeru'' (to inform personally) contains two of the same kanji used to write ''shinkokuzai''. The draft criminal code of November 1877 used the term ''shinkokuzai'' directly in the definitions of various offenses. Under modern Japanese law, before July 13, 2017, sexual offenses such as rape or indecent assault were categorized as ''shinkokuzai'', lest a prosecution against the victim's will result in secondary victimization or infringement of privacy.

South Korea

In South Korea, the following offenses are categorized as ''chingojoe'':
*Criminal adultery
*Defamation against a dead person, and
*Contempt of court

Republic of China

Before 1949

The term ''qīn'gàozuì'' ( zh, 親告罪) was used in laws in China's early Republic era (1912–1928), for example in the 1921 Criminal Procedure Ordinance or the 1928 Criminal Procedure Law. However, in modern terminology, the concept of a crime for which there will be no trial without complaint is usually expressed as ''gàosunǎilùn zhī zuì'' ( zh, 告訴乃論之罪).

Taiwan

Th
Criminal Code of Taiwan
inherited from the Republic of China, uses the term (lit. "action only if complained"). There are currently five offenses in this category, all of which are minor offenses against individuals: insult, defamation, infringement of freedom of marriage (usually by parents), maltreat (of family members) and ordinary embezzlement. However, the Criminal Code does state that any such offense resulting in serious consequences (e.g. serious injury or death) is prosecutable without complaint.

A 1999 amendment to Taiwan's Criminal Code removed indecent assault and rape (with the exception of spousal rape) from this category.

Egypt

While no formal class of law equivalent to the ''Antragsdelikt'' exists in the law of Egypt, several religious crimes, including apostasy, cannot be prosecuted on the initiative of the public prosecutor; the case must instead be raised by another citizen.

Notes

References

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{{Authority control

Criminal law legal terminology
Law of Austria
German criminal law
Japanese criminal law
Law of Taiwan
Law of South Korea