Effectiveness of the Venezuelan Juvenile Criminal Justice System

Abstract

This essay proposes the urgent reform of the Organic Law for the Protection of Children and Adolescents, or the creation of an Organic Code of Criminal Procedure for Adolescents, which redirects the meaning and scope of the Special Law, in terms of imputability, subsidiary responsibility in cases of unaccountability and coercive sanctions for non-compliance by children who, once they reach adolescence, disobey the protection measures imposed by the Council for the Protection of Children and Adolescents. It is considered that the form of review of custodial sanctions should be expressly regulated, taking into account the physical time served in the detention centre, the individual therapy plan, reports issued by the centres where the adolescent is detained, the legal good protected and the magnitude of the damage caused. Investigation of the juvenile criminal path is one of the most important premises in the field of adolescent criminal law, given that the appearance of young offenders who continue their criminal activity as adults is becoming increasingly common, which is why it is necessary to reformulate and implement public policies that formally control this criminal activity among adolescents.