Juvenile suspects to be separated from adult co-defendents

Juvenile suspects in criminal court cases will from this year be tried separately from adult co-defendants as part of ongoing efforts by Beijing authorities to protect the rights of young offenders.

The switch is aimed at preventing minors from being intimidated by older accomplices and allowing them a more relaxed environment to make their case, said Ci Qiang, president of Beijing Higher Court.

Pilot programs to try out the system have already been running for four years in Fengtai and Mentougou district courts, although authorities were not able to give a clear date on when it will be made citywide.

The move will greatly aid the judicial process for suspects under 18 in terms of punishments, according to Zhai Liping, chief judge of Fengtai's juvenile court. She told METRO that youngsters rarely receive lighter sentences if tried alongside adults, and in cases when they have their co-defendants have appealed to the higher court.

"The principle when dealing with teenage crime is to put education as a priority, with punishment as supplementary," she said, citing a recent example when two adult suspects raided a store with a minor. The adults were sentenced to three and a half years in prison by district judges, while the teenager got 18 months after a juvenile court hearing.

At juvenile courts, social services officers check on offenders' academic scores and family environment to provide more information before the final ruling. Court interiors have also been revamped to make them more "child-friendly", with round tables replacing the tradition rectangular ones.

Separating defendants is the latest in a series of measures designed to better protect the legal rights of young offenders.

In March, Beijing Higher Court announced it will erase the criminal records of eligible youngsters who have served their time to help them return to a normal life.

To qualify, offenders must have been under 18 at the time of the crime and sentenced to no more than five years in detention. They must show remorse and stay out of trouble while on probation.

Courts in Beijing also plan to introduce psychological counseling for teenage suspects that appear in juvenile courts.

China Daily

(China Daily 05/04/2011)