General Part

Section II. Crime

Chapter 3. The Concept of Crime and the Types of Crimes

Article 18. Recidivism

1. The committing of an intentional crime by a person who has a record of conviction for an intentional crime committed earlier shall be classified as the recidivism of crimes.

2. The recidivism of crimes shall be classified as a dangerous crime in the following cases:
• a) when a person has committed a grave crime, for which he is sentenced to a real deprivation of liberty, if earlier this person has been sentenced twice or more times to deprivation of liberty for intentional medium gravity crimes;
b) when a person has committed an intentional grave crime, if he has been earlier convicted for a grave or especially grave crime to real deprivation of liberty.

3. Recidivism shall be deemed especially dangerous:
• a) when a person has committed a grave crime, for which he is sentenced to a real deprivation of liberty, if earlier this person has been convicted twice and sentenced to real deprivation of liberty for a grave crime;
b) when a person has committed an especially grave crime, if earlier he has been convicted twice for grave crimes or has been convicted for an especially grave crime.

4. When recognizing the recidivism of crime, the following shall not be taken into account:
• a) convictions for intentional crimes of little gravity;
b) convictions for crimes committed by a person of the age of less than 18 years;
c) convictions for crimes for which sentences have been recognized as suspended or for which a respite has been granted, if the suspended sentence or the respite have not been reversed and the person has not been sent for serving a sentence to institutions of confinement, as well as convictions quashed or struck from the criminal record in the procedure established by Article 86 of this Code.

5. Recidivism shall involve a stricter punishment on the basis of, and within the limits, envisaged by this Code .

General Part

Section III. Punishment

Chapter 10. Imposition of Punishment

Article 68. Imposition of Punishment in Case of Recidivism of Crimes

1. When imposing punishment in a case of recidivism, dangerous recidivism or especially dangerous recidivism, account shall be taken of the nature and degree of the social danger of the crimes committed earlier, the circumstances by virtue of which corrective influence of the previous punishment has proved to be insufficient, and also the nature and degree of the social danger of the newly committed crimes.

2. The term of punishment in a case of any recidivism may not be less than one third of the maximum term of the most severe penalty prescribed for the crime committed, but within the limits of the sanction of the appropriate article of the Special Part of this Code.

3. In the event of any recidivism of crimes where a court of law establishes the mitigating circumstances provided for by Article 61 of this Code, the term of imposed punishment may be less than one third of the maximum term of the most severe penalty provided for committing the crime but within the sanction of the appropriate article of the Special Part of this Code, while in the presence of exceptional circumstances, provided for by Article 64 of this Code, a more lenient punishment than the one stipulated for a given crime may be imposed .