Under criminal prosecution is understood the activity aimed at detecting the citizen who committed the crime, as well as obtaining evidence confirming his involvement in the assault. It is carried out by the prosecution. The obligation to prosecute is stated in Art. 21 Code of Criminal Procedure. With comments from 2016 and the specifics of the application of the provisions will be introduced later. 
The content of the norm
Art. 21 Code of Criminal Procedure the duty of prosecution is assigned to the interrogating officer, prosecutor and investigator. These persons conduct procedural activities in cases of private-public, public prosecution. Criminal prosecution is carried out on behalf of the state.
Based h. 2 tbsp. 21 Code of Criminal Procedure when identifying signs of a crime, authorized employees must take measures aimed at establishing the event, exposing the persons involved in the act.
In cases established by Codex Code 20, the investigator or the head of the investigative unit, as well as the interrogating officer (after obtaining consent from the prosecutor) carry out the prosecution, regardless of the will of the victim of the attack.
Part 4 of Art. 21 Code of Criminal Procedure establishes the mandatory fulfillment of requirements, requests, instructions of authorized persons specified in part 1 for all institutions, organizations, citizens, enterprises.
After the initiation of the case, the prosecutor may conclude a pre-trial agreement with the subject suspected / accused of the act.
Art. 21 Code of Criminal Procedure with comments
The analyzed norm is imperative. In witht. 21 Code of Criminal Procedure an exhaustive list of bodies and persons authorized to prosecute is enshrined. No one except the investigator, prosecutor, interrogating officer may conduct this procedural activity.
It should be noted that Art. 21 CPC does not include the court or judges on the list of authorized entities. This is due to the need to comply with the principle of adversarial proceedings. The court, in turn, must remain impartial to the parties. The inclusion of prosecution in his authority would entail the possibility of taking someone else’s position before studying the circumstances of the case.
Indictment function
The concept of "criminal prosecution" involves the commission of specific actions aimed at confirming / refuting the citizen's involvement in the assault.
The implementation of the accusatory function includes the collection, analysis, assessment of evidence, which not only expose, but also justify the person suspected of assault. This interpretation is fully consistent with the fundamental criminal procedure principles enshrined in Articles 11 and 14 of the Code, and the provisions of Art. 73 of the CPC, which explicitly indicates factors that exclude crime and, therefore, the punishability of behavior, as well as extenuating circumstances. 
In each case of detecting signs of a crime, authorized employees, according to Art. 21 CPCmust take all measures provided for by the Code to establish the person involved in it, as well as a full picture of the event.
Expression of will of the victim
In 3 parts Art. 21 CPC it is allowed to ignore the intentions of the victim of the crime when officials exercise their powers in public-private or public proceedings.This order is aimed at ensuring the protection of the interests of entities that are dependent on the citizen involved in the act, as well as incapable for objective reasons to independently exercise their rights. At the same time, the powers of officials are exercised in this way only in cases enshrined in rule 20part 4). Art. 21 Code of Criminal Procedure contains a direct link to this article.
Part 4 provides for cases when the reasons and circumstances enshrined in the law really impede the realization of a person’s rights. In such cases, an official, in compliance with legislative provisions, is obligated to initiate proceedings without a statement from the victim.
Nuances
The power of the prosecutor provided for in subsection 3 of Article 21 to conduct prosecutions in this category of cases, regardless of the will of the victim of the act, solely subject to the conditions specified in paragraph 4 to 20 of the Code, ensures the proper observance of the interests of the citizen in respect of whom the assault was committed.
According to a number of experts, the norms of the current Code have substantially changed the regulation of the issue of protecting the interests of victims in comparison with previous legislation. Previously, in addition to the prosecutor, the investigator and the interrogator were vested with the authority to ignore the will of the victim. Meanwhile, it is impossible not to take into account the possibility of the prosecutor, within the framework of the modern Code, to transfer the case materials to the investigator / investigator for their full investigation in accordance with the rules established by the procedural legislation. 
Commentary on Part 4 of Art. 21 Code of Criminal Procedure
In the fourth part of the analyzed norm, the most important rule is fixed, by means of which the prosecutor, investigator and other authorized persons and bodies are responsible for the prosecution. In accordance with the provisions h. 4 tbsp. 21 CPC, all entities, regardless of status, form of ownership and other circumstances, must fulfill the requirements, requests and instructions received from these employees and structures.
Of course, the requirements, instructions, requests should be drawn up within the powers of the inquiry officer, prosecutor, investigator. The limits of authority of the latter, in particular, are fixed in article 38 of the CPC. The actions of the inquirer are regulated in 41 standards, and the body of the inquiry - in 40. The powers of the prosecutor are described in article 37 of the Code.
Special cases
Orders, requests, requirements referred to in h. 4 tbsp. CPCpresented within the competence of authorized employees may relate to the provision of information classified as a secret protected by law (state, commercial, tax, banking, etc.). This information is confidential and there is no public access to it.
Pursuant to paragraph 4 tbsp. 21 Code of Criminal Procedure, the indicated types of requests, instructions and requirements must be executed within the framework of the rules enshrined in the relevant regulatory acts. For example, data deemed to be a trade secret may be provided to the interrogating officer / investigator in the cases they conduct, only with the consent of the prosecutor.
Rules for the provision of information upon request, request, instruction sent under paragraph 4 tbsp. 21 Code of Criminal Procedure, classified as bank secrecy, are determined by federal law. The procedure for access to information considered a commercial secret is regulated in article 139 of the Civil Code.
Design Features
Orders, requests and requirements sent in accordance with Section 4, Art. 21 CPCrelated to the implementation of legal actions must be in writing. This, in particular, about the order to interrogate a witness living in another region, the requirement to carry out an audit, and so on. 
Other requests for information may be transmitted orally or in writing.
If an entity is required under Section 4, Art.21 Code of Criminal Procedure fulfill the order, cannot, due to objective reasons, do this, he must notify the applicant in writing of this, citing circumstances that impede the fulfillment of his obligation.
Activity Content
Based on the analysis of the rules governing this procedural activity, we can determine the following set of actions:
- The collection of evidence, the application of procedural measures to ensure the establishment of citizen involvement and the application of appropriate sanctions.
- Justification before the court of the accusation, convincing the court of the guilt of the person and the need to apply punishment to him.
One of the essential elements of the prosecution is the maintenance of the charge.
Signs of activity
Criminal prosecution is carried out exclusively in the forms provided for by procedural legislation.
The responsibility to conduct this activity rests with a narrow circle of subjects. Only they can establish the actual circumstances of the event, give them a legal assessment and make an appropriate procedural decision.
The content of the prosecution consists in taking the necessary measures aimed at identifying the event and the persons involved in it, and in issuing acts addressed to the participants in the proceedings. This feature follows not only from the provisions of Art. 21, but also other Codex standards. 
Criminal prosecution is an activity that is distinguished by a state-imperious, public character, since it is ensured by the coercive power of the state. In article 21, in particular, it is explicitly stated that authorized employees perform their duties on behalf of the Russian Federation.
Criminal prosecution is considered a key stage in the whole process. In the course of it, the content of production and the direction of its movement are determined.
Features of the prosecution
According to general rules, activity begins at the moment of opening a case. The prosecution ends when the onset of responsibility or the release of a person from it. In the first case, the court recognizes the citizen’s involvement in the assault and pronounces the verdict.
However, to end the prosecution, it is necessary that the court order comes into force. A similar rule applies when an acquittal is issued, as well as a decision on the application of medical coercive measures to the subject.
Exceptions
The closure of the case entails the termination of the prosecution, according to 3 parts 24 of the article of the CPC. At the same time, the case must be closed upon termination of the prosecution of the subjects accused / suspected, except in cases when they are not involved in the act. In such situations, persecution continues to expose the perpetrators.
In case of re-qualification of the act, the prosecution, in accordance with article 175 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, is terminated. Re-qualification should be considered a change / addition of the prosecution, the completion of the prosecution for a certain part of the prosecution.
Classification
In article 21 of the CPC, 2 types of prosecution are mentioned: in cases of public-private and public prosecution. In addition, production can be opened privately.
The classification of prosecutions is aimed at:
- The designation of the procedure for procedural activities and, accordingly, the basic rules, the sequence of procedural actions of authorized employees, the nature of decisions taken at different stages of production.
- Determination of the dependence of the procedure on the will of the participants.
Public order
It is used in almost all criminal cases. In the framework of proceedings of a public (general) nature, the prosecution is more independent from the position of the participants. If signs of an act are identified, the case shall be instituted in accordance with Art. 21, i.e. on behalf of the state. In this case, the will of the victim is not taken into account. 
The victim of the act and his representative are entitled to participate in the prosecution, but they cannot make independent decisions on the production.
This procedure for prosecution is more consistent with the characteristics and objectives of the proceedings: its objectivity, independence.
Private production
Private prosecution is based on the principle of discretion. It involves a fairly high degree of influence of the parties on the final decision on the case.
Cases in such cases:
- They are excited on the basis of a statement from the victim or his representative.
- They are terminated in case of reconciliation with the guilty party also by the will of the victim.
It should be noted that reconciliation of the participants in the proceedings is allowed until the removal of the court (first or appeal) to the meeting room and the final decision on the case.
Private public policy
The list of cases that may be opened in public-private order is enshrined in article 20 of the CPC. Normally, 9 compositions are provided. This list is considered closed.
Such cases are initiated on the basis of a statement from the victim, as well as proceedings in private. The termination in connection with the reconciliation of the participants is not provided, except in cases stipulated by articles 25 of the CPC and 74 of the Criminal Code.
Investigation and consideration of cases is carried out in a general manner. Prior to the opening of proceedings, the victim of the offense has the right to withdraw the application. However, if the case is open, it continues on a common basis.
In some cases, the initiation of proceedings can be carried out without consent and, accordingly, without a statement from the victim. For example, if a rape involving murder is committed, the provisions of Article 21 of the Code of Criminal Procedure apply.
All other matters relate to proceedings that are opened in a general manner. 
Additionally
Considering the persecution as a specific process, one cannot help but dwell on the question of its content. Taking into account a certain uniformity of actions, as well as the tasks and goals of the procedures, their certain isolation in time, we can state the staged nature of the activity.
Along with this, the sequence of transition from one stage to another in the framework of the prosecution is rather arbitrary. This is due to the fact that after exposing the citizen guilty of the crime, after establishing the circumstances of the incident, their legal assessment, the authorized employee may need to return to the initial stage, to carry out any procedural actions. The duties of employees, according to Article 21 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, include taking all measures enshrined in the law to restore the picture of the event and bring the perpetrators to account.