Annotation

The article conducts a historical and legal analysis of the formation and development of self-security units of the penitentiary system of Russia. The authors of the study identify three main stages in the evolution of the development of these units: 1) the pre-revolutionary period (until 1917), 2) the post-revolutionary (Soviet) period (1918-1991), 3) the modern period (from 1991 to the present). The creation of these units originates in Peter's times and the era of the reign of Empress Anna Ioannovna. These are the time periods when the police were created and developed in the Russian Empire. Special attention is beginning to be paid to the issues of compliance with the legality of the actions of employees of the internal affairs bodies on the territory of our state. After the abolition of the police chief's office as a result of the provincial reform of Empress Catherine II in 1775, the institutions she created continued to exist until 1918. The past century can rightfully be called the century of great warriors and revolutions of a global scale, as well as the historical period of global socio-economic changes and transformation of society. Therefore, the development of self-security units of the penal system in the 20th century has its own distinctive features. In the first quarter of the 20th century, the disciplinary practice of bringing police officers to justice actively appeared. After that, the institution of special authorities develops. By the middle of the last century, personnel apparatuses and a special inspection were being created, whose activities were aimed at strengthening the rule of law and discipline in the police, conducting official checks on the facts of violations of the law, identifying and eliminating the causes and conditions conducive to their commission. Later, these structures were called the Personnel Inspectorate and were part of the personnel departments (departments) of the USSR Ministry of Internal Affairs until 1996. The reform of the penal system, which began in 1997 and was completed by the fall of 1998, makes new adjustments to the activities of the internal security units of the penal system. The historical and legal analysis carried out by the authors made it possible to assess the important role of self-security units in maintaining the rule of law of the state. In contemporary circumstances, it is crucial to implement measures that will safeguard the operational and economic stability of the penal system’s institutions and agencies. A key aspect of this involves combating corruption-related crimes and misconduct among staff members, federal civil servants, and individuals who have interactions with the penitentiary authorities. The foundations of the activities of self-security units laid down many decades ago are aimed today at strengthening the rule of law and observing official discipline among employees (employees) of the Federal Penitentiary Service. Countering corruption, identifying, suppressing and preventing official crimes is the main task of these units of the penal system. The study of the peculiarities of the activities of the studied units made it possible to determine not only the range of tasks they solve, but also the place in the general system of operational-search services of the penitentiary system. The authors come to the conclusion that in conditions of aggravated geopolitical relations with unfriendly countries, the issue of bolstering the national security framework of the Russian Federation holds significant relevance, and achieving this goal necessitates the harmonised efforts of the internal security divisions across all law enforcement entities. Consequently, when the Main Directorate of Internal Security and the regional offices of the Federal Penitentiary Service of Russia are planning and implementing their initiatives, they must prioritise the protection of penal system employees and their families, as well as the proactive prevention and suppression of corruption within the penal institutions and agencies.