Case Concerning Reconsideration and Review of a Decision not to Prosecute Mao X for Organizing Prostitution
(SPP Guiding Case No. 212)
Key words
Organizing prostitution; Harboring prostitution; Substantive examination; Review and correction by the people's procuratorate at a higher level; Reconsideration and review of a decision not to prosecute
Summary
When a premise involved in a case conducts legitimate business operations while simultaneously hosting prostitution activities, and the operator claims a lack of knowledge of prostitution activities, the people's procuraorates shall conduct a comprehensive examination of the evidence on record, applying logical reasoning and empirical judgment to determine whether the operator has subjective knowledge. If the operator clearly knows that others, after renting the premise, manage or control individuals for prostitution through recruitment, employment, or other means, yet still provides the premise for such activities, manages and allocates the proceeds from prostitution, and oversees the premise and personnel for the prostitution, the operator shall be deemed to have committed the crime of organizing prostitution. In handling review cases of a decision not to prosecute, if the people's procuratorates, upon examination, determine that the decision not to prosecute made by a lower-level people's procuratorate is erroneous, it shall, in accordance with the law, instruct the lower-level people's procuratorate to make corrections, or revoke or amend the decision not to prosecute made by the lower-level people's procuratorate.
Relevant provisions
Articles 358 (1) and 359 of the Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China
Article 179 of the Criminal Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China (Rev. 2018)
Articles 379 (2) and 380 of the Rules of Criminal Procedure for the People's Procuratorates (Rev. 2019)
Articles 1 (1) and 8 of the Interpretation of the Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate on Several Issues concerning the Application of Law in the Handling of Criminal Cases regarding Organizing, Forcing, Inducing, Harboring, or Introducing Prostitution (Judicial Interpretation No. 13 [2017] of the Supreme People's Court, implemented from July 25, 2017)
