Gang fights among young people are currently shaking up the neighborhoods of Vienna. There are repeated calls for higher sentences and a lowering of the age of criminal responsibility from the current fourteen years to around twelve years. Now the Neustart Probation Association has spoken out.
“Nobody who strikes during a fight thinks about how high the penalty is for physical harm,” says Thomas Marecek from Neustart Vienna. Locking it down for as long as possible only postpones the problem. “Every prison sentence comes to an end.” If the young person then returns to the same structures, the chance of recidivism is high.
In fact, male adolescents are at the highest risk of crime between puberty and their early twenties. This phenomenon can be observed worldwide. “Then the likelihood of committing a crime decreases again,” says Marecek.
‘Many have experienced violence themselves’
To ensure that a conviction at a young age does not lead to a criminal career, more sustainable solutions such as probation and other social interventions are needed. For about two-thirds of young people, probation assistance leads to a life without punishment, if it is fully completed. According to Marecek, those affected must be confronted with their crime and other solutions must be sought. “Many of those who have committed violence have experienced violence themselves and have learned that it is a way to stand up for themselves.”
Police intervention necessary
Neustart recommends regulated structures, ideally through a workplace, which is combined with an orderly daily routine and a new social environment.
Last year, 1,388 young people were convicted in Austria, compared to 2,248 in 2013. However, the hotspots are concentrated in a few public places such as parks or metro stations in Vienna. “Here, of course, the population has the right to expect solutions. Police measures are also needed here,” says Marecek.
Source: Krone
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