Czech Senate passes penal code

Prague - The Czech Senate today in accordance with expectations passed a new penal code that lowers the age of criminal liability and legal sexual intercourse to 14 from 15 as of next year.

The Senate proposed no modifications to the legislation which the lower house passed late last year. Nevertheless, Justice Minister Jiri Pospisil, who worked the bill out, has promised to help prepare an amendment to it to change the age limit that has been criticised by some politicians and experts.

"Either the deputies or the government will submit a draft amendment to parliament, that would open the issue of the age limit for both legal sex and criminal liability," Pospisil (Civic Democrats, ODS) said.

The promise was demanded by ministers for the junior ruling Christian Democrats (KDU-CSL) as a condition for them to support the penal code. In the vote today, the draft was supported by 74 of the 76 senators present. The legislation is to modernise the Czech penal law and replace the code from 1961, which tends to protect collective-related values," said Pospisil. The new code puts emphasis on the "protection of life, health, dignity, honour and property of our citizens," he said.

The code, which is yet to be signed by the president, divides criminal deeds into crimes and offences. The latter category comprises the deeds punishable with five years in prison at the most.

Prison punishments for serious crimes against life and health are toughened, becoming three to five years longer. The institution of home internment is introduced for minor offences, partially replacing suspended sentences. The code also reckons with the establishment of special institutes for sexual deviants and psychopaths. It introduces a number of new crimes such as stalking, certain types of doping in sport and negligence towards animals.

It distinguishes murder from intentional killing, for the sake of women who killed their partners who tyrannised them.

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Senát schválil nový trestní kodex

Punishment For Marihuana Getting Milder For Czechs

Prague - Possession of marihuana for one's own needs will be punished much less severely than that of other drugs, under the new Criminal Code that distinguishes between soft and hard drugs that was passed by the Czech Senate today.

The production and sale of drugs will be punished by up to five years and if the crime is very serious, the upper limit may be up to 15 years in prison.

Offer of drugs to children will be punishable with ten years in prison.

The code introduces milder punishment for the possession of marihuana for one's own needs.

A small number is only qualified as an offence, if the amount is bigger it will be maximum twelve months in prison and the growing of cannabis is punishable with maximum six months in prison (hallucinogenic mushrooms with up to twelve months).

The legislation follows up the December verdict by the Constitutional Court saying that growing cannabis in itself is not punishable and does not automatically mean the production of any drug.

Under a government draft decree, the small amount is defined as fewer than 20 cigarettes of marihuana or three plants of cannabis. The current measurements outline one marihuana cigarette to be within the weight range of 1 - 1.5 gm, jezis marie....so just under an ounce for the yanks!...

In the case of psilocybin mushroom (Psilocybe bohemica) the upper limit for small amount is defined as 25 pieces. -Holy shit !!
In the case of other drugs, the amount "bigger than small" is to start at about ten doses or 0.8 gram of ecstasy, half a gram of pervitine (methamphetamine) or cocaine, 0.3 gram of morphine, 0.2 gram of heroin and 0.005 gram of LSD.

The government decree is to make it clear whether possession of drugs for one's one needs is punishable. Courts did not have to follow a similar decree proclaimed by the police.

Some illegal performance enhancement methods are now qualified as a criminal act punishable with up to twelve months for coaches and eight years for doctors.

This relates to the methods of artificial delivery of oxygen to enhance the capacity of organism for endurance as it seriously threatens human life, the legislation's drafter and former ski jumper Pavel Ploc said.

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Za marihuanu budou asi hrozit mírnější tresty než za jiné drogy