Should delinquent children be criminally responsible at an early age?

The proportion of children (under 14 years old) among all suspects of violent crime in Germany is currently 6.5 percent, and the proportion of youths among suspects of violent crime is 15.9 percent. In 2023, foreign children and foreign youths were suspected of violent crime three times more often than children and youths with a German passport. Violent crimes include severe bodily harm, rape, and murder. Violent crime among children under 14 years old rose by 17.0 percent from 2022 to 2023, while among youths aged 14 to under 18 years, it increased by 14.4 percent. According to the “Polizeiliche Kriminalstatistik” (PKS), the proportion of German children and youths involved in violent crime increased by 9 percent from 2022 to 2023, while the proportion of non-German children and youths rose by 28.4 percent.

When children under 14 years old in Germany commit serious violent offenses – such as dangerous bodily harm – this often sparks a public discussion about lowering the age of criminal responsibility from 14 to 12 years. The argument is usually based on the assumption that children mature earlier, due to violence-glorifying content on the internet. There is no empirical evidence for this. However, all experience shows that the consumption of violent representations on the internet can lead to a retardation of development and the brutalization of children, particularly when there is no supportive family environment.

There are already over 200 facilities nationwide with "deprivation of liberty measures" in child and youth welfare, where children receive compensatory education, support, and, if necessary, medical treatment. 

Alternatives to lowering the minimum age of criminal responsibility include the increased establishment of the currently missing specialized facilities for very young deviant children, for children who have committed sexual offenses, or for children coming from gang and organized crime. 

The first preventive measure is considered to be an upbringing in which adult caregivers undertake the arduous task of setting clear boundaries, monitoring compliance, and, if necessary, imposing age-appropriate sanctions. Especially until the age of 13, children respond very well to this, as stated in child and adolescent psychiatry.

Read the entire publication "Früher schuldfähig? Die Herabsetzung des Strafmündigkeitsalters aus Sicht der Kinder- und Jugendpsychiatrie” here as a PDF. Please note, to date the analysis is only available in German.