On the issue of preventing recidivism among juveniles serving punishment in juvenile correctional facilities

The article notes the dynamics of convicting juveniles for committing crimes in the Russian Federation to significantly decrease in recent years. Thus, the number of convicted juveniles in 2017 was 31.6% less than in 2013. These data directly correlate with the downward trend in the numbers of registered juvenile crimes and detected juvenile offenders over the past few years. The article analyses a number of socio-demographic and criminal-legal features of persons convicted of committing crimes while juveniles, indicates the most common types of punishments imposed on these persons. It is argued that, against the background of a general trend to liberalize criminal policy relating to juvenile convicts, in fact, the courts continue to condemn every one out of five of them to real imprisonment. The year 2017 saw the absolute number of convicts who committed crimes while juveniles as high as 3.5 thousand persons. Against this background, the number of juvenile correctional facilities for young offenders was showing significant reduction. The article states that the qualitative characteristics of juveniles held in juvenile correctional facilities have worsened. For example, in the total number of convicts held in juvenile correctional facilities, the proportion of persons convicted of murder, intentional infliction of grievous bodily harm and rape amounted to 30.8% in 2006, while it was 31.3% in 2017. The author notes that in 2017 the number of crimes committed in juvenile correctional facilities amounted to 92.9% as compared with 2001. At the same time, the crime rate among convicts in juvenile correctional facilities increased from 1.98 per 1,000 people in 2006 to 2.08 in 2017. In addition, the rate of juvenile correctional facilities punishment regime breaches increased from 636.2 per 1,000 people in 2006 to 1,420.7 in 2017. The article mentions the absence of a systemic and consistent approach to the execution of punishment in the form of deprivation of liberty relating to juveniles; in particular, the refusal to convert juvenile correctional facilities into educational centres is noted. The coming years are unlikely to see a radical reform of this system. Consequently, the work on convicts' correction must be carried out in the framework established by the current legislation. The author believes that all basic curative measures specified in the law can be fully applied in enforcing a sentence of deprivation of liberty to convicted juveniles under the current Russian penal enforcement legislation. In the current conditions, particular importance is attached to the correction of the existing educational process shortcomings and the implementation of the following basic measures: (1) employees qualified in the field of pedagogy and psychology to work with convicted juveniles should be trained; (2) juveniles in juvenile correctional facilities should obtain effective psychological and pedagogical support; (3) an educational environment favourable for convicted juveniles should be created; juvenile convicts should be involved in drawing up individual preventive programs with a view to their subsequent re-socialisation, identification, strengthening and development of interest in the areas of activities approved in society; (4) purposeful and comprehensive propagation of narratives against the crime subculture should be delivered in juvenile correctional facilities. These areas, from the author's point of view, are of paramount importance in preventing recidivism among juvenile offenders.

Keywords

Authors

References