Czech prosecutor general backs lowering age of criminal responsibility to 13 — RMF24

In the Czech Republic, Prosecutor General Lenka Bradáčová supported the idea of lowering the minimum age of criminal responsibility from 15 to 13. She stated this during an appearance on Czech public television. RMF24 reports.

Violent crimes

According to Bradáčová, youth crime overall is not increasing, but the nature of offenses is changing: theft is increasingly giving way to violent crimes.

The idea is also supported by the Czech Ministry of Justice. The head of the ministry, Jeroným Tejc, noted that possible changes would primarily concern the most serious crimes, for which Czech law even provides life imprisonment. These are cases involving particularly brutal acts committed by minors.

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Reform of educational institutions

Bradáčová stressed that lowering the age threshold alone would not be enough. In her opinion, the system of educational institutions in the Czech Republic requires thorough reform. The prosecutor believes that children facing difficult life circumstances should not be placed in the same institutions as minors who have committed serious crimes.

She also called for possible changes in the justice sector to be combined with reforms in healthcare and education. Currently, people under the age of 15 in the Czech Republic cannot be held criminally liable, although a court may apply appropriate measures to them, including placement in an educational institution.