Parliament is due to approve regulations that would allow the raising of children’s criminal liability from 10 to 12 years. President Cyril Ramaphosa signed the Child Justice Amendment Act into law in May 2020, which amended the Child Justice Act of 2008.
News24 reports that last Thursday (17 March), Alta Botha from the Department of Justice & Constitutional Development told the Portfolio Committee on Justice & Correctional Services that the amendments also retain the rebuttable presumption retained for children who are older than 12 but younger than 14. This means children 12-14 can be prosecuted, but there is an assumption that they don't have criminal capacity.
The amendment removes the requirement that prosecutors must consider children’s cognitive ability when determining whether or not to prosecute a child since they are not equipped to do so. It also states that the criminal capacity of a child will only be addressed during plea and trial proceedings in a child justice court, and not during the preliminary inquiry and for diversion purposes. Botha told the committee the Act can only be implemented once the regulations have been amended. The regulations are consequential in nature, Botha said.
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