Police of the Russian empire: features of the evolution of the police authority's legal status

Introduction: the author analyzed evolution of the police authority’s legal status as key subjects of the function of law enforcement during the Russian Empire. Materials and Methods: the study was based on the analysis of the legal acts regulating the legal status of the police during the existence of the Russian Empire. The main method of research is comparative-historical. The application of the legal method, as well as the method of comparative law, is also essential in the context of achieving the research goal. The authors used the works of Russian specialists in studying the history of police bodies, namely, V.L. Miner, A.V. Borisov, A.V. Lobanov, A.V. Bykov, V.A. Kudina et al. Results: as a result of the conducted study, it was established that prerequisites for institutionalization of police as a main subject of realization the state law and enforcement function were started to form from the formation of Moscow centralized state. Discussion and Conclusions: the author concludes that the evolution of the legal status of the police bodies is contradictory - on the one hand, during the existence of the Russian Empire, the foundations of the legal regulation of the main activities of the domestic police were laid, and on the other hand, the prerequisites for the formation of a negative image of the police bodies in the public consciousness were created.