Prospects for expanding the range of compulsory measures of educational influence used in release of minors from criminal punishment

The release of minors from criminal punishment is one of the manifestations of the method of encouragement in the criminal law of Russia. The expansion of the range of alternative measures to criminal punishment applied to minors has great importance. The article analyzes the legislation of application of measures alternative to criminal punishment in number of foreign countries. An analysis of French legislation has shown that the French model of juvenile justice assumes an individual approach to a juvenile offender, creating for him the most favored regime in terms of release from punishment. There are several measures that deserve attention in the legislation of a number of countries near Russia abroad, along with compulsory measures of educational influence, similar to the measures provided for in the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. In particular, the Criminal Code of the Republic of Moldova provides for such a measure as imposing on a minor the obligation to participate in a probation program. Such programs differ both in orientation (probation programs for the correction of social behavior or social reintegration) and in the way minors participate in them (group or individual probation programs). The essence of compulsory measures of educational influence is the upbringing of minors and restriction of misconduct. According to the authors' opinion, compulsory measures of educational influence, not being any form of realization of criminal responsibility, can, if properly applied, have a greater educational effect on minors than criminal punishment or another form of criminal responsibility. The Russian legislator pays obviously insufficient attention to the regulation of compulsory measures of educational influence. The range of compulsory measures of educational influence in the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation should be significantly expanded, which will contribute to the individualization of the release of minors from criminal punishment. It is proposed to include in the range of compulsory measures of educational influence such measures as imposing the obligation to publicly or in another form determined by the court to apologize to the victim; imposing the obligation to take a course of psychological assistance; imposing the obligation to take a course of compulsory education; imposing the obligation to participate in the probation program; gratuitous socially useful educational work (in institutions and organizations that provide social and medical assistance).

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