Legal and interpretative criteria in the typicality of the crime of electronic cigarette smuggling

Abstract

The article on the crime of smuggling electronic cigarettes, typified in article 334-A of the Penal Code, discusses the legal and interpretative criteria adopted by the Federal Public Prosecutor's Office and the Federal Court to recognize the applicability of the principle of insignificance that leads to the atypicality of criminal conduct. The research is qualitative and quantitative in nature, exploratory in nature, with a time frame in the years 2022 to 2024 and a spatial scope in the state of Paraná. The methodological instruments adopted were a bibliographical review of the categories that guide the research, documentary research focusing on legislation and case law on the subject of the crime of smuggling electronic cigarettes. Quantitative data was also collected from the filing promotions offered by the Federal Public Prosecutor's Office in Paraná and the Ponta Grossa Judicial Subsection, which deal with recognizing the principle of insignificance in e-cigarette smuggling crimes. The research is structured around an analysis of the crime of cigarette smuggling and the principle of insignificance. It then looks at the criteria adopted by the Federal Public Prosecutor's Office in Paraná for recognizing the atypicality of criminal conduct and the rulings made by the Federal Regional Court of the 4th Region and the Ponta Grossa Judicial Subsection. The data allows us to conclude that there is no alignment in the decisions handed down by the Superior Courts, the Regional Court, federal judges and the Public Prosecutor's Office.