The development of criminal law and criminal executive policy in Ukraine (during the period of independence) concerning juveniles who have committed a prohibited act
Year: 2024
Type: article
Abstract: In every society, resocialising juveniles who have committed a prohibited act and fully reintegrating them back into society remains a pressing issue to resolve. Societies devise various unique approaches to address these challenges. Ukraine has established its own distinct model encompassing prevention, deterrence, punishment and resocialisation, specifically tailored for juveniles. The article examines the principles of criminal liability for juvenile offenders in Ukraine, detailing the system of criminal penalties and social rehabilitation measures applied to them. It delves into the evolution of punitive policies for juveniles in Ukraine since gaining independence, highlighting the conditions of their detention in Ukrainian penal institutions and how they differ from those for adult convicts. Additionally, it discusses the institutional development of penitentiaries in Ukraine. The focus was placed on the factors shaping the development of criminal and criminal executive policies in independent Ukraine, notably the shift in the state’s trajectory towards democratic and civilised principles, adherence to the rule of law and Ukraine’s integration into European frameworks. The article scrutinises changes to the legal framework regulating the sentencing of juveniles for criminal offences, and changes in the conditions under which juveniles serve their sentences. It highlights the gradual transformation of the approach to juvenile criminal punishment, underscored by an increasing recognition of the need for novel methods of resocialising juveniles in order to facilitate their reintegration into a healthy social environment. The article also examines the fluctuating trends in juvenile crime rates. Since the 2000s, there has been a significant decrease in the number of juveniles sentenced to imprisonment due to positive developments within the state, the humanization of criminal law, and the broader implementation of alternative forms of punishment for juvenile offenders. The introduction of probation in Ukraine has also played a positive role.
Source: Archiwum Kryminologii.
DOI: 10.7420/ak2024.05
Author: Liudmyla Dubchak
Language: English
Topic: Criminal Law and Policy
Subfield: Law
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W7170308684