Age limits of penal liability of the minors

AuthorPetru Tarchila
PositionAurel Vlaicu University of Arad
Pages253-261
253
AGE LIMITS OF PENAL LIABILITY OF THE MINORS
PhD lecturer Petru Trchil
„Aurel V laicu” University of Arad
Abstract:
The penal national legislation understood the necessity of raising the age
limit when the minor child can answer for the penal nature of the crime he had
commited, in order to protect and correct him by social educational means.
Only if the court considers that the educative measure is not enogh for
correcting and reforming the minor, a fine or imprisonment punishment is applied,
with the mention that the minimum and maximum limits are reduced to half.
In all the cases of penal inquiry or action of minor deliquents, the
legislation in the matter provides the obligatory character of social inquiry
performed by the Tutorial Authority, which will investigate the circumstances and
causes of the crime and will provide the necessary data to the court.
Key words: legislation, penal responsibility, educative measure,
imprisonment punishment
The criminological and educational psychology researches led to the
conclusion that it is necessary to raise the age limit at which the minor can answer,
aspect reflected in all international legislations, in order to and remove from the
severe coercion field of the penal law, a later intervention following in order to
reform them by educational means. The 1864 Penal Code provided that the minors
under the age of 8, are protected from punishment those between 8 and 15 could be
penalized if it was proved that they had acted with judgment, and the minors with
ages between 15 and 20 answered penal, if they were at least 15 years old.
In the 1937 Penal Code, the penal liability of the minors was established at
the age of 15 years turned, and between the ages of 13 and 15 the minor only
answered if if it was proved that they had acted with judgment. As a consequence,
the age from which the minors are penal liable was raised from 8 to 13, which
seems to us as a progress compared to the 1864 Penal Code.
The 1968 penal Code, which is still in force today, has raised the age limit
from which the minor is penal liable.
The period of the minor’s formation until his full maturity, reported to his
age was divided into three stages:
1) before the age of 14;
2) between the age of 14 and 16;
3) between the age of 16 and 185.
5 Maria Zolyneak, PenalLaw – general part, ,,Chemarea” Foundation Publishing, Iaşi, 1995, p.853;

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