JUVENILE JUSTICE SYSTEM

Essay based on interview with a person working in the Juvenile Justice System

Essay based on interview with a person working in the Juvenile Justice System

Introduction

The first juvenile courts were created in Spain, as in the Most European countries early this century, which got driven by positivist ideology. This system got introduced in the U.S. in 1989, in Chicago. Three major models have chaired the Juvenile Justice since its creation: protection model, the educational model and the model of responsibility. Firstly, one might say that there is a strict subordination of the education to the judiciary, secondly, a clear predominance of the action education with a consequent reduction of judicial intervention, and thirdly finding a balance between judicial and educational.

Discussion

The term "juvenile justice" refers to, norms, standards and legislations, procedures, institutions, mechanisms, and groups particularly for the treatment of juvenile criminal offenders. Nevertheless, given the objectives of this site, the term juvenile justice does not include just children in conflict with the law, but the term also designates the efforts to eliminate the roots of crime and to strengthen prevention measures.

Prevention: it aims primarily to ensure that children are not in conflict with the law and, where appropriate, to prevent their direct contact with the formal criminal justice system.

Diversion: the aim is to ensure that minors, at all stages of the procedure, the possibility of an alternative to formal court system. It is built on the principles of restorative justice, which involves the community, and that effectively treats the causes of behavior by identifying strategies to prevent recurrence.

Protection: it aims to prevent children being in conflict with the law to be victims of human rights violations. This shield comprises of their personal development, to discourage any recurrence, encourage their rehabilitation and their reintegration into society.

Until the 1st of August 2006, Article 37 of the Code Criminal Guanajuato State established that the age of criminal minimum was 16 years old. When a child of that age commits a crime, he/she will responsible under the provisions of law, regulating the responsibility of the child. This rule was correct under the Constitution. Previously Federal Constitution did not plan any major decisions regarding minimum age of criminal responsibility, which is, nothing was said about it. However, as the Federal Constitution was remiss, it got corresponded then to the State Congress to establish meanings of both minimum age and criminal justice system as juvenile offenders; it even planned in the previous text of Article 18 Constitution for the Federation, and the Governments of the States would be empowered to establish special institutions for the treatment of juvenile offenders, with no other restriction. As per the interview the judge thinks that this system cannot be considered if he did not possessed knowledge and reasonably comprehensive aspects that should be beyond regulated in the transition from one system to another.

The following international instruments are used to manage issues relating to juvenile justice:

Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC);

Standard Minimum Rules for the United Nations ...