Nature of Electronic Evidence Freezing in Criminal Proceedings and Its Legal Regulation

Currently, the electronic evidence freezing is characterized by an overall low application rate, a multiplicity of applicable circumstances and various freezing methods. In terms of legislation and practice, the electronic evidence freezing involves problems in terms of its application, authorization procedures, the relationship between electronic evidence freezing and its methods, freezing costs, protection of rights, and legal liability. As for its legal nature, the electronic evidence freezing falls into the category of preservative investigative measures and compulsory investigative measures. Based on the objectives of guaranteeing human rights and punishing crimes, the electronic evidence freezing as a compulsory investigative measure should follow the spirit of the principles of statutory reservation and proportionality, including clarifying the application scope of electronic evidence freezing, optimizing decision and enforcement procedures, defining the relationship between electronic evidence freezing and its methods, designing the mechanism for bearing the freezing costs, prefecting the rights guarantee mechanism in electronic evidence freezing, and constructing the procedural sanction mechanism in electronic evidence freezing.