Better protect victims – Plakolm wants stricter checks on criminal records

A ‘Krone’ story caused a furore in mid-February. An actor and presenter who worked as a freelancer at a well-known Viennese theater company is said to have had sexual contacts with boys from a choir in Vienna. There was a raid – and a complaint! The presumption of innocence is important, but such cases should be prevented as much as possible.

This is done through prevention and more specifically by tightening up the criminal record extract. Once a crime has been erased, it will no longer appear on the criminal record extract. However, if, for example, you have tortured the elderly or disabled or sexually abused children, you will only be left with a note on the so-called ‘criminal record extract’, which you will only receive from the authorities if your employer confirms that you mainly deal with these vulnerable population groups. you have to make.

“Easier access” required
“This protects perpetrators,” say critics. One of them is Claudia Plakolm, State Secretary for Youth of the ÖVP. She now demands that this ‘obstacle’ be removed and that the extensive criminal record extract will soon be available in the same way as the criminal record extract. “Access must become less complicated; as a society we need safety. If someone has abused the elderly or children, this must be quickly visible to employers and associations. “I don’t want to give perpetrators the opportunity to repeat their disgusting actions,” she explains.