Main tasks and practical skills
- The Judge should determine exactly the date, month and year of birth of the accused (Item 2 of Article 301 of the CrPC). This determination is extremely important in concluding whether the accused has attained the age of being subject to criminal liability or not. The Judge should determine how old they were when they committed the offence, and whether they had attained the age of 18 when they were investigated, prosecuted and heard. The Judge should ensure proper implementation of the provisions of the CrPC that apply to them as well as the juvenile offender.
- The Judge should try every measure to determine the age of the accused. Verification of the age of an accused is generally conducted by the investigating body and Procuracy. As a consequence, where the documents enclosed in the case file provide insufficient grounds for the determination of the age of a juvenile offender, the Judge should return the case file for further investigation.
- Where the investigating body and Procuracy have taken every necessary measure, but have not been able to determine the correct date, month and year of birth, the age shall be determined as follows:
- If only the specific month, not the date, has been determined, the last date of such month shall be considered as the date of birth of the accused;
- If only the specific quarter, not the date and month, has been determined, the last date of the last month of such quarter shall be considered as the date and month of birth of the accused;
- If only the specific first half or other half of the year, not the date and month, has been determined, the date of birth of the accused shall be deemed as 30 June (first half) or 31 December (other half) of such year;
- If even the specific first half or other half of the year has not been determined, the date of birth of the accused shall be deemed as 31 December of such year.
- The Judge should consider the physical and mental development of a juvenile offender, their awareness of the offence. The Judge should also determine whether the juvenile offender was incited by any adult (See Official Letter No. 81/2002/TANDTC dated 10 June 2002 of the SPC answering technical questions, specifically Question No. 1 of Part “Criminal Proceedings”).
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