A special rule on prescription of crimes committed by minors, criteria to determine the penalties that will be applied to young offenders and a provision that extends the obligation to report when the violation of their rights is known, were the main issues advanced by the Mixed Commission that is responsible for settling the differences around the project on youth social reintegration.
The instance has carried out intense work in recent weeks to advance the initiative and during today’s session they defined some fundamental aspects such as the prescription of criminal actions.
CurrentlyLaw 20,084, which establishes a system of responsibility for adolescent offenders of the law, establishes that crimes committed by minors will prescribe after 2 years in the case of simple crimes and in 5 years, in cases of crimes.
However, the Joint Committee doubled that deadline and agreed that simple crimes will prescribe after 5 years, while crimes after 10 years.
Likewise, it approved a special rule that states that the term for the prescription will begin to take effect when the victim turns 18 years old.
On this point there was an extensive discussion, since there are parliamentarians who are in favor of the imprescriptibility of crimes, especially those of a sexual nature, regardless of whether they are committed by minors.
CRITERIA
Another point that was approved is the one related to the criteria used for the application of sentences by judges. It should be remembered that during its process in the Senate, they established four criteria for the determination of sentences, two of which were eliminated during the study of the project in the Chamber of Deputies and Deputies.
The Joint Commission approved by majority include as a criterion, “the motives and other information that explains the occurrence of the facts and the criminal behavior” and “the behavior demonstrated before and after the occurrence of the facts, and during the investigation of the process.”
Another point that was approved during this session is related to protecting the rights of young offenders of the law and for this it is extended the obligation to report to all public officials or to any body or professional that has knowledge of violations of rights or of facts that may have the character of crimes.
Likewise, two regulations that modified the organic law of Sename and which establishes a system of care for children and adolescents through the network of Sename collaborators, and its subsidy regime, were suppressed, in the understanding that this matter will be analyzed in a transitory norm.
Until now, the Mixed has approved the norms related to the organization of the National Youth Social Reintegration Service; the creation of a Standards and Accreditation Council, its integration, incompatibilities, vacancies; the Intersectoral Action Plans; intervention models; the accreditations of organizations and natural persons that will work with minors; the supervision and sanctions of programs for lawbreakers, among others.
*With information from senate.
