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ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEWS AND CASE STUDIES: Transfer or not Transfer? It is a Question: The Challenges to and Solutions for the Transfer Procedure of Suspected Environmental Pollution Criminal Cases

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  25 October 2013

Yan Houfu  and
Sun Xiaopu
Yan Houfu*
Affiliation:
Assistant Professor, Beijing Normal University Law School, Beijing, China
Sun Xiaopu
Affiliation:
Law Fellow, Institute for Governance and Sustainable Development, Washington DC, USA
*
Yan Houfu, Beijing Normal University Law School, Beijing, 100875, China; (phone) 86 13810253496; (e-mail) ysyan0826@gmail.com
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Abstract

Serious environmental pollution incidents happen in China every year. However, only a few of them have been filed as environmental pollution criminal cases. We argue in this paper that the main reason is because the environmental administrative agencies often refuse to transfer the suspected environmental pollution criminal cases to the judicial authorities. Therefore, it's critical to better supervise the transfer of cases from the environmental administrative agencies, in order to ensure the implementation of the criminal laws and regulations, as well as to pressing criminal charges on the suspects instead of having them get away with administrative penalties. The supervision mechanisms include at least the interior supervision by other administrative agencies and the exterior supervision by the general public. An effectively functioning environmental criminal law system is very important for environmental protection and rule of law in China.

Environmental Practice 15:271–279 (2013)

Type
Features
Information
Environmental Practice , Volume 15 , Issue 3 , September 2013 , pp. 271 - 279
Copyright
Copyright © National Association of Environmental Professionals 2013 

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