On the Issue of Responsibility for the Transfer of Mobile Communications to Persons in Custody and in Places of Deprivation of Liberty

Mobile communications are now quite often used to commit illegal acts, and therefore access to them by persons in custody and in prison allows them to continue criminal activities. Despite the ban on transferring means of communication to the above-mentioned persons, these technical devices find themselves in their access in a variety of ways, which is associated both with the imperfect functioning of the institutions of the penal system and with the dynamics of transformation of the corresponding methods of transfer. Considering the public danger of access to mobile devices for persons in prison and custody, not only the timely suppression of acts related to their transfer, but also the imposition of a fair punishment, as well as preventive and preventive action, becomes of fundamental importance. The purpose of the presented study is to analyze the legal liability provided for by Russian legislation for the transfer of mobile communications equipment to persons in custody and in prison. The author comes to the conclusion that administrative liability under Art. 19.12 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation, which was applied for the above-mentioned offenses until the end of 2023, was insufficient and ineffective, as evidenced by a fairly large number of similar offenses committed in recent years. The timeliness and validity of tightening administrative liability is noted, including in terms of identifying the transfer of mobile devices and their components directly as a separate offense, as well as introducing criminal liability for the repeated commission of this act (Article 321.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). Attention is focused on the significant preventive potential of the institution of criminal liability within the framework of the stated issues.