By the verdict of the N-city court of the Leningrad region, citizen K. was found guilty of committing a crime under Part 1 of Article 328 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation and sentenced to six months in prison with a suspended sentence. In itself, such a sentence is rather an exception to the rule.

This is due to the fact that in the overwhelming majority of cases, prosecutors refuse to initiate criminal cases in this category: it is too difficult to prove the intention of a young person, and the draft procedure itself is a rather complicated undertaking. In the procedure for conducting conscription events, you can always find violations by questioning the results of a medical examination and the decision on conscription, which, in turn, makes it impossible to recognize a citizen as guilty of evading military service. Part one of Article 328 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation reads as follows: “evading military service in the absence of legal grounds for exemption from this service is punishable by a fine of up to two hundred thousand rubles or in the amount of the convicted person's salary or other income for a period of up to eighteen months , or arrest for a term of three to six months, or imprisonment for a term of up to two years. " I would like to draw your attention to the words "in the absence of legal grounds for exemption from this service." That is, the prosecutor's office during the preliminary investigation must prove that the citizen not only did not appear on the RVC's subpoena to be sent to the place of service (that is, after passing a medical examination and a decision by the draft commission), but also did not have any other, possibly unaccounted for the draft board or RVC doctors of the grounds for postponement or exemption from conscription. All this is very difficult, and the crime rate is still such that it is not always relevant to deal with this category of cases closely. And yet the young man was convicted. I would like to dwell on the main points and factors that allowed the court to issue a guilty verdict.

It all started with the fact that Citizen K. was beaten by a group of young people. As a result of this beating, he received a blow to the head and lost consciousness for some time. There were eyewitnesses to the incident who helped him get home and called a doctor. The young man was examined, he was given a coupon to see a doctor at the local Central District Hospital. Abrasions and bruises were present on almost the entire body. However, Mr K. did not apply to this medical institution and chose to just lie down at home. On the fact of the beating, the internal affairs bodies were interested in him, however, the young man, being completely indifferent, did not go to the police station when summoned verbally. Then “harsh working days” began, and then, as always unexpectedly, a summons came. The young man came to the RVC on it, passed the doctors and showed the ticket of the Central Regional Hospital of the city of N., on which, in particular, was written "suspicion of a concussion." However, his story did not make any impression on the RVC doctors; it was considered possible to recognize him as fit for military service immediately after a medical examination and without any referrals for additional examination. He was given a summons to be sent to the place of duty. Obviously, the conscript not only did not insist on initiating a criminal case on the fact of his beating, but also did not consider it necessary to undergo examinations, which were necessary not only as a chance not to join the army, but also simply for the health of the young man.

The second stage was the appeal of the military commissar to the prosecutor's office of the city of N. with a request to initiate a criminal case. At the same time, the prosecutors were especially interested in whether the decision on conscription had been challenged by the citizen in the manner prescribed by law. I think the answer is obvious: the young man did not dispute anything, he did not file any complaints, not to mention an application to the court, he simply expected his fate, hoping that his oral arguments would be heard. I suppose even the busiest prosecutor is happy to bring such a gift of fate to court. Judge for yourself: the suspect himself, having real opportunities to avoid not only responsibility, but also a draft in the Armed Forces (at least the current one), did everything (or rather did nothing) to issue an indictment. Despite the fact that the prosecutor demanded that a sentence of two years be imposed, and the court reduced this term by four times, it is obvious that the young man had the opportunity to avoid this sentence.

To achieve a positive result in this case, in addition to knowing your rights and responsibilities of military commissariats and draft commissions, you must:

1. To know that the RVC doctor cannot establish on the spot that a young person is healthy upon presentation of medical documents by the latter. A young man, at a minimum, should be sent for additional examination to confirm his complaints and diagnoses (or refute them);

2. To know that he has the right to declare disagreement with the conclusion of the suitability and the decision of the draft board and, if his statements are not recorded officials, apply in writing. In this case, in relation to a young person, they are obliged to conduct a control medical examination by doctors of a higher draft board, which has the right to cancel the decision of a lower draft board;

3. To know that the citizen's complaints must be recorded in the personal file of the conscript, and medical documents must be attached to him;

4. To achieve all of the above by writing complaints and statements, attach the necessary medical documents to the materials of the personal file of the conscript, sending them by registered mail;

5. Independently apply to law enforcement agencies in case of violation of their rights by RVC officials and draft commissions;

6. Do not hesitate to apply to the courts and challenge decisions made in violation of the procedure for conducting conscription events or not complying with medical documents, provided information about the state of health.

Sincerely,
lawyer of the Specialized Bar Association "Draft"
Igor Kukanov