Practice question
A new criminal statute imposes a heavier penalty than applied when the conduct occurred. An official relies on the UDHR as approval for retrospectively imposing that heavier penalty. No separate internationally criminal conduct issue is presented. Which statement follows Article 11(2)?
- Any later penalty always applies retrospectively
- Only the defendant’s popularity matters
- Heavier penalties are required whenever a new statute passes
- The declaration prohibits imposing a heavier penalty than the one applicable when the offense was committed.
- The declaration never addresses temporal criminal legality
Legal references
- Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Articles 11 and 23-27, General Assembly Resolution 217 A (III), December 10, 1948, official text: https://www.un.org/en/node/124305
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