Criteria for the Criminalization of Socially Dangerous acts involving genetic technologies: from Bioethical Principles to Criminal Law Prohibition

The article identifi es a doctrinal gap in the theoretical under-standing of the criminalization of acts involving genetic technologies: the universal criteria of criminal law doctrine fail to account for the deferred and transgenerational nature of harm, whereas fragmented, casuistic approaches merely respond to incidents that have already occurred without forming a coherent system. The necessity of integrating classical criminal law foundations, bioethical imperatives, and a risk-oriented approach into a unified system of criteria is substantiated. Six interrelated criteria for criminalization are proposed: social danger (taking into account deferred and transgenerational harm); irreversibility and scale of consequences; violation of personal autonomy; non-discrimination; consideration of the interests of future generations; and subsidiarity. Each criterion can be operationalized in the elements of a criminal offense, thereby providing a methodological basis for the construction of new criminal law prohibitions. The proposed system makes it possible to objectify the assessment of the social danger of genetic manipulations and serves as a scientifi cally grounded filter for legislative decisions on criminalization, thereby ensuring a balanced and predictable criminal policy in this area.