Children and juvenile justice: proposals for improvements

Drawing an accurate picture about young offending in Europe is complex. A certain perception that children are becoming more violent appears to be on the increase. However,
available statistics do not reflect an overall increase of the rate of youth crime. Furthermore, it should not be viewed in isolation, without taking account of the rising crime rates in the population as a whole. Comparative study of juvenile justice is a difficult exercise, complicated by the use of different definitions, the lack of data and differences in the way in which data are collected.
Nonetheless, a number of European countries are responding in a more punitive manner, making increasing use of detention for children and continuing to imprison children alongside adults.

In several European countries, the age of criminal responsibility is very low, incarceration rates a cause of concern and the number of children from minority groups in prison disproportionate. While alternative measures are being put in place for some cases, the overall trend appears to be towards more punitive responses, especially in the case of older children and those involved in serious crime.

However, in some countries the number of children being sent to prison is falling as more use is made of diversion programmes, both before and as an alternative to court proceedings, and of alternatives to custody. The growth of practices underpinned by restorative justice values and the principle of family conferencing is noticeable here. Many of these approaches have yet to be tested rigorously for effectiveness in responding positively to offending behaviour.

We can therefore only call for an in-depth evaluation of these approaches to ensure that they are fully consistent with the principles set out in international and European standards concerning children.

When addressing this issue, we should remember that a child is defined internationally as anyone under the age of 18 unless the law provides that majority is attained earlier. Several definitions of a juvenile and juvenile offender exist. The most recent one, set out in a European recommendation is a person below the age of 18 who is alleged to have or has committed an offence.

States use different approaches to respond to young offending and youth justice systems vary from one country to the next. Children’s rights standards, based on international and European instruments, take on added importance amid this diversity. They reflect a common approach that emphasises diversion, the use of non-custodial measures and a focus on children’s needs and interests. For this reason, the standards are useful and important as a benchmark that is common to all states in the Council of Europe.

Abstract:

The objective of this paper is to identify the relevant international and European standards on juvenile justice and to outline examples of how these standards are being implemented. The issue of child-friendly justice and contact between children and courts is deliberately not addressed as the Council of Europe will soon be publishing guidelines on this very topic.
The paper therefore begins with an outline of international and European youth justice standards before considering four practical issues: prevention, diversion, sentencing and detention.