Būtinasis reikalingumas eismo įvykių bylose

Abstract

In the Lithuanian criminal law the institute of necessity is relevant; however, little research into it has been done so far. Cases when the defendants claim to have acted under the circumstances of necessity are rare. Courts acquit defendants on the grounds of the circumstances of necessity even less frequently. The author of the article analyses necessity from a new angle, i.e. with regard to the corpus delicti of a particular crime. The author presents the objective features of the formal compliance of necessity to the corpus delicti rule established in Article 281 of the Lithuanian Criminal Code. The author distinguishes between the objective features which are difficult to be proved and the ones getting insufficient attention. Normally, the values protected by criminal law, action and inaction and the establishment of the consequences provided for in the Criminal Code do not raise problems. The establishment of a causal relationship between the action or inaction and their consequences is more complex because, usually, a person makes several violations of the Road Traffic Rules; therefore, the Court, having stated that more than one traffic rule was violated during the traffic accident, has to find out which violation was the direct cause of the negative consequences.