Phenomenology of Juvenile Delinquency and the Illusion of Criminal Deterrence
Abstract
This paper examines the phenomenological transformation of juvenile delinquency, marked by severe violent crimes within adolescent romantic relationships (aged 13–15) alongside collective urban unrest. In addressing these dynamics, the study highlights the structural failure of abstract general deterrence, demonstrating how severe statutory penalties - including the newly codified offense of femicide - fail to guide youths governed by emotional immaturity and impulsivity. The analysis critically engages with the governmental bill approved on July 14, 2026, and introduced on July 30, 2026 (Senate Act no. 1990, XIX Legislatura), pointing out the inadequacy of situational public-order policing for crimes committed within the private sphere and the financial limits of the territorial educational alliance, as well as the proposed rebuttable presumption of criminal capacity (House Bill no. 3080, XIX Legislatura), subsequently incorporated into emergency legislation. The Author identifies the execution phase of the sentence as the core of the systemic crisis, proposing a structural refounding of scientific personality observation in juvenile facilities and the implementation of binding diagnostic protocols (Article 27(3) of the Constitution). Finally, the study examines Decree-Law no. 190 of October 22, 2026, exposing the shortcomings of an emergency penal response that escalates punishment without addressing underlying socio-educational vulnerabilities.
Key Legal Takeaways
- Phenomenological mutation: Alongside violent urban youth gatherings, extremely grave relational offences are emerging in the 13–15 age bracket, defying reduction to traditional sociological models of peripheral marginalisation alone.
- Ineffectiveness of abstract deterrence: Increasing statutory sentencing ranges, including the newly enacted offence under Article 577-bis of the Criminal Code, fails to act as a psychological counter-motive upon adolescent personalities marked by incomplete inhibitory impulse control.
- Rebuttable presumption under Article 98 Criminal Code (Law Decree no. 190/2026): The presumptive shift introduced for minors aged fourteen and over does not extinguish the constitutional and European duty (Directive (EU) 2016/800) to conduct an individualised personality assessment.
- Refounding juvenile sentence enforcement: Overcoming the systemic crisis requires specialised clinical-diagnostic units within Juvenile Penal Institutions, standardised forensic assessment protocols, and adequately funded educational safeguards.
