Is it illegal to hit a thief

Hitting a thief is not a crime, and it cannot be generalized.

If the thief is committing a theft, the thief can be justified in defense in order to stop the thief's theft. However, there are limits to justifiable defence. Because theft is not a violent crime that seriously endangers personal safety, special justifiable defense cannot be exercised, and violence can only be used to the extent that it can prevent the thief from stealing.

It must be carried out before the thief's theft is completed. If the thief succeeds in the theft and leaves the scene, even if the thief is encountered again, the thief must not be beaten, because the theft has already been completed. If you hit the thief again, it is an untimely defense, and it no longer constitutes legitimate defense, and it is a crime.

Article 20 of the Criminal Law: Justifiable defense, an act taken to stop an unlawful infringement in order to protect the state, the public interest, the person, property and other rights of oneself or others from an ongoing unlawful infringement, and causes harm to the unlawful offender, is justified defense and does not bear criminal responsibility.

Extended information: Excessive defense refers to acts of legitimate defense that clearly exceed the necessary limits and cause significant harm to the wrongdoer.

Excessive defense has the following main characteristics:

1. It must be significantly more than necessary. The "necessary limit" here refers to the strength of defence necessary to effectively stop the unlawful offense; "Clearly exceeding the necessary limit" means that the average person can recognize that the strength of his or her defence has exceeded the strength necessary for legitimate defence, that is, whether the defensive act can stop the ongoing unlawful offense.

2. Causing significant damage to the wrongdoer. The term "major harm" here refers to serious consequences such as unlawful infringement of the person's person due to the defender's defensive act that clearly exceeds the necessary limit.

In short, when faced with illegal infringement, if the infringement can be stopped by more moderate means, do not use drastic defensive means; When the violation has been stopped, no further harm should be inflicted on the aggressor. Otherwise, the limit of legitimate defence may be exceeded and become excessively defensive.

Legal analysis: If Xiaoyu is on the way to theft, it can be justified in defense, but it cannot exceed a certain limit, if the thief is caught, the injury also needs to bear legal responsibility, and the slight injury is an illegal act in violation of the "Public Security Administration Punishment Law", and the minor injury and above are criminal acts that constitute the crime of intentional injury. According to the provisions of Article 20 of the Criminal Law, an act taken to stop an unlawful infringement in order to protect the State, the public interest, the person, property and other rights of the person or others from an ongoing unlawful infringement and causes damage to the wrongdoer shall be regarded as legitimate defense and shall not bear criminal responsibility.

Legal basis: Article 20 of the Criminal Law stipulates that if an act taken to stop an unlawful infringement is taken to protect the state, the public interest, the person, property and other rights of oneself or others from an ongoing unlawful infringement, and causes damage to the unlawful infringer, it is justified defense and does not bear criminal responsibility.

Wounding a thief constitutes intentional injury to the offender law, establishing justifiable self-defense, not committing a crime. But legitimate defense must be within certain limits. Where major harm is clearly caused beyond the necessary limit, criminal responsibility shall be borne, but punishment shall be mitigated or waived.

Legal basis: Article 20 of the Criminal Law Acts taken to stop unlawful infringements in order to protect the state, the public interest, the person, property and other rights of oneself or others from ongoing unlawful infringement, and harm to the unlawful infringer of man-made members, are justified defense and do not bear criminal responsibility.

Hitting a thief is an offence and may constitute the crime of intentional injury.

Legal analysisThe crime of intentional injury refers to the act of intentionally and unlawfully harming the physical health of others, and is a crime of infringing on citizens' personal rights and democratic rights in the Criminal Law of China. The main characteristics are: (1) The object of the crime is the physical health of others.

Intentionally harming one's own physical health generally does not constitute a crime. However, if the act of self-harm harms the interests of society and violates other provisions of the Criminal Law, it constitutes a crime. (2) The objective aspect of the crime is that the perpetrator has carried out an act that illegally harms the physical health of others.

Harming the physical health of others mainly refers to damaging the integrity of human tissues or destroying the normal function of human organs. There are many ways to injure someone, but no matter what means are used, bodily harm to another person is an act of harm. The difference in the means of committing the crime is only one of the circumstances of sentencing, and is not an element of the crime.

The result of the injury may be minor or serious, or it may result in death. Actions that harm the body of others can take the form of either positive or negative omissions. The former such as punching and kicking, slashing, smashing, smashing, boiling water, etc.; In the latter case, if the babysitter, who is responsible for protecting the child, is irresponsible and does not care when she sees the child poking a knife at the body, and as a result, the child stabs herself in the eye, which may constitute this crime.

It can be carried out by oneself, or by using others such as minors and mentally ill people, and can also be carried out by using domesticated animals such as poisonous snakes and wolf dogs. It can not only target the appearance of the human body, causing the mutilation of external tissues or the destruction of appearance, but also target the interior of the human body, causing the destruction of internal tissues and organs, and hinder its normal functional activities. In short, whether it is directly committed by the person or indirectly, and no matter what part is targeted or what method is adopted, as long as it is intentional and can cause harm to the personal health of others, the crime of intentional injury can be constituted.

Legal basisCriminal Law of the People's Republic of China Article 234 Whoever intentionally injures the body of another person shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than three years, short-term detention or controlled release. Whoever commits the crime in the preceding paragraph, causing serious injury, is to be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than three years but not more than ten years; Whoever causes death or seriously injures a person by especially cruel means, causing serious disability, is to be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than 10 years, life imprisonment, or death. Where this Law provides otherwise, follow those provisions.

Article 234-1 Whoever organizes others to sell human organs is sentenced to up to five years imprisonment and a concurrent fine; where the circumstances are serious, a sentence of five or more years imprisonment and a concurrent fine or confiscation of property is to be given. Whoever removes his or her organs without his consent, or from a person under the age of 18, or forces or deceives others into donating organs, is to be convicted and punished in accordance with the provisions of articles 234 and 232 of this Law. Where organs from corpses are removed against the person's prior wishes, or where the person did not express their consent before their death, violating state regulations, and harvesting their corpse organs against the wishes of their close relatives, it is to be convicted and punished in accordance with the provisions of article 302 of this Law.