However, the number of convictions among young people in Austria is declining significantly. “Prison is the wrong place for children,” said the Neustart association in the debate.
“Despite certain expertise (as a former judge, note), I do not allow myself to make a final assessment before involving all stakeholders,” said Edtstadler on the sidelines of a press conference in the federal capital. It took “a bundle of measures.” Lowering the criminal age also needs to be considered: “We look at different models and talk to those who have to do with such cases, and that is the police officers.” The politician was bothered by the fact that “when she initiates steps, she immediately gets rejected.”
“Deeply shocking case”
Edtstadler spoke of a “deeply shocking case” regarding the fate of the twelve-year-old. The Interior Minister is therefore considering tightening juvenile criminal law. “After a crime like this, you can’t just go back to business as usual, so we’re working on suggestions on how to deal with cases like this in the future.”
According to Edtstadler, people under the age of 14 repeatedly commit serious crimes. In some European countries the age of criminal responsibility is below the age that applies in Austria. The Minister of Justice listed Ireland (13), Great Britain (13) and Switzerland (ten years). According to Statistics Austria, the number of convictions among young people – boys and girls between the ages of 14 and 18 – has decreased significantly between 2012 and 2022 – figures for 2023 are not yet available – however. In 2012, 4,358 convictions were reported for this age group, and in 2022 there were 3,495. That’s a decrease of 19.8 percent. In the case of crimes once morest life and limb, the decrease is 23.7 percent and in the case of bodily harm it is 20.5 percent.
But Edtstadler emphasized that it’s not just regarding age: “Criminal responsibility is one thing.” But on the Internet, for example, there are “freely accessible violent videos that have no warnings.” So what is needed is a “holistic approach and considerations regarding how we can counteract this, create more transparency and involve parents”. We are in contact with a group of experts and will also provide information when there are meetings or results.
The fact that the 17 suspects are at large, even those members of this “multicultural gang” who are older than fourteen, “no one understands,” said FPÖ federal party chairman Herbert Kickl on Tuesday. This would lead the criminal justice system to absurdity. The victim now has to expect to be able to meet the alleged tormentors at any time and the family is even afraid of their revenge. He also renewed his call for the criminal and criminal liability to be reduced to under 14 years.
There are no prerequisites for pre-trial detention
The Vienna public prosecutor’s office did not submit any applications for pretrial detention in this case “because the legal requirements for this do not exist,” as authority spokeswoman Nina Bussek explained on Tuesday followingnoon when asked. The accused are not accused of “the fact that the girl in question was raped by a group of male teenagers,” emphasized Bussek. Twelve of a total of 13 known, criminally responsible suspects are being investigated on suspicion of serious sexual abuse. Two other suspects were not yet 14 years old at the time of the crime – the underage girl is said to have had sexual contact with members of the group between February 2023 and June 2023 – and therefore not of criminal responsibility; two others have not yet been identified.
Girls forced to tolerate violence?
A single young person – a 16-year-old boy – is suspected of having used violence to force the girl to tolerate sexual acts. However, the public prosecutor does not believe there is any urgent suspicion. However, this would be mandatory by law for the imposition of pre-trial detention. In addition, juvenile detention may only be imposed on young people “if the associated disadvantages for the young person’s personal development and advancement are not disproportionate to the significance of the crime and the expected punishment,” as the law states.
The attack that the 16-year-old is accused of is said to have taken place in April, eleven months ago. Demanding that the young person be imprisoned now would be irritating because the reason for his arrest would hardly be the risk of committing a crime. There is no evidence that the boy has engaged in criminal behavior since last April.
“Imprisonment should be the last resort”
Although in this specific case the suspicion of sexual abuse of a minor cannot be dismissed out of hand because consensual sexual contact between a person under 14 and someone over 14 also satisfies this offense, it is likely to be the case with regard to the 13 suspects There are clear gradations as to how wrongful the act is. For some, the intimate contact is said to have been comparatively superficial, for others more intense.
“Prison is the wrong place for children and young people because they don’t learn the rules they need to find their way in society,” said Thomas Marecek from the Neustart association. For an imprisoned young person, prison means above all adaptation: “He won’t learn there how to organize his life or find his role. He can only try that out outside the prison walls.” Marecek said that young people who have committed criminal offenses need a daily structure and caregivers who can help them deal with the crime and show them alternative courses of action: “Imprisonment should be the last resort, the last resort, when there is no other option left.”
