Justifiable Defence and Necessity Under Chinese Criminal Law
Not every act that meets the formal elements of a crime results in criminal liability. The Criminal Law, Articles 20–21 [CN official] recognises justifiable defence (zheng dang fang wei) and necessity (jin ji bi xian) as complete defences. The SPC, SPP & MPS Guiding Opinions on Justifiable Defence (2020) provides important clarifications on how these defences are applied.
Justifiable Defence (Zheng Dang Fang Wei)
Article 20 provides that an act taken to stop an unlawful infringement causing harm to the infringer does not constitute a crime, provided the act was necessary to stop the infringement and did not manifestly exceed what was necessary. The 2020 Guiding Opinions clarified that defenders are not required to retreat and that the assessment should consider the situation from the perspective of a reasonable person at the scene — not with the benefit of hindsight.
Special Defence Rights
Article 20(3) provides a "special defence" right: where the unlawful infringement involves ongoing homicide, robbery, rape, kidnapping, or other violent crimes that seriously endanger personal safety, a defensive act causing death or injury does not constitute excessive defence. This is sometimes called the "castle doctrine" of Chinese law.
Primary legislation: Criminal Law, Articles 20–21 [CN official]
Judicial interpretation: SPC, SPP & MPS Guiding Opinions on Justifiable Defence (2020)
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