ASSESSING THE RULES GOVERNING MITIGATING FACTORS IN THE IRANIAN LAW

Legal and judicial mitigating factors are one of the effective mechanisms for individualization of punishments and persuading offenders to avoid the continuation of the act of crime. These would also prevent the harmful consequences of crime from proliferating, and it help to discover crime and arrest aiders and abettors. The legislature has in different instances specified such legal exemptions and in Article 22 of Islsmic Penal Code and in Article 277 of the Criminal Procedure Act have delegated the authority to determine the conditions under which the punishment can be reduced to the criminal court's judges, both during the proceedings and offer the verdict is issued. Legislature has not determined the extent of and the criteria for punishment reduction exemptions, and for this the current law and regulations seem to insufficient.