Talk:Age of criminal responsibility

This article should mention the concept of trying children as adults, an increasingly popular option on many U.S. states. --Cab88 16:21, 14 July 2006 (UTC)

Agreed, also could anyone clarify the U.S. situation? - in the text it says that the age is 16 or 18 in most states; in the table it says 7.

Also, in the table, what is the footnote for Columbia and Peru? Robina Fox 10:50, 22 September 2006 (UTC)

I was intrigued by the differentiation between boys and girls in Iran: is this the only country where this is the case? and what is the justification? Robina Fox 15:30, 6 October 2006 (UTC)

Nordic situation

As this article attempts to encompass the whole world, it is pertinent to discuss also the situation on the European continent. I am not familiar with the legal systems in Central Europe, but at least all Nordic countries follow the practice of not treating persons under 15 years of age as criminals. This practice has been in use since the Middle Ages. However, the principle of no criminal liability does not mean that such persons are free from all responsibility. First of all, civil liablity is always applicable, although the compensations may be reduced from the full amount, if a minor is in question. In addition, a crime committed by a minor will always be reported to the social authorities, which will investigate the situation of the child's family. Depending on the circumstances of the child, the child may either be placed in counselling or even taken to custody. These measures are taken to secure the child's development, not made as acts of justice. Consequently, they are made as adminstrative decisions, not by court order, although they can be appealed against to an adminstrative court. However, for the child, the overall impact of being placed to a care unit and separated from the parents is not very dissimilar from being in trouble with the law. --MPorciusCato 11:20, 18 January 2007 (UTC)

Question

How does this apply to adults who committed crimes as children? (i.e. a person who is now an adult who committed murder as a child) I'm specifically curious about Maryland, but in general, how does this work? I must say trying to find the answer to this question is confusing... I think it's either 7 or 16, with judge's discretion (in Maryland), but that's a bizarre range - can one really be convicted for committing murder as an 8year old, even decades later? Tuf-Kat 04:14, 30 January 2007 (UTC)

It depends on how the statute of limitations is formulated. In most European countries, an eight-year-old is a child and cannot commit murder, so the question only applies to the UK and the US. However, if the crime is not covered by the statute of limitations or some similar legal device, you can be convicted, even decades after the crime. For example, in Finland, the statute of limitations does not apply if the crime can carry a punishment of life sentence. The rationale behind this is: If you had been sentenced immediately after the crime, you would still be in prison, so you only get your desserts. --MPorciusCato 09:34, 30 January 2007 (UTC)

Ages of criminal responsibility by country table: what is footnote ** for?

In the table under the header Ages of criminal responsibility by country there is a footnote for **, but I see no item in the table with two asterixes.bb 22:19, 24 March 2007 (UTC)

What does this sentence mean?

"The following are the minimum ages at which children are subject to penal law with children aged under 18." -- i.e., the phrase "with children under 18".