Bill in Brazil wants to lower criminal responsibility to 16

World Today

In Brazil, a move to lower the age of criminal responsibility from 18 to 16 years old is sparking fierce debate. If the bill is passed, it would mean locking up younger teens in the country’s overcrowded and often dangerous prisons. CCTV America’s Lucrecia Franco filed this report from Rio de Janeiro.
Follow Lucrecia C. Franco on Twitter @LucreciaFranco

Highlights: 

  • Brazil has the world’s fourth largest prison population, with more than half a million inmates housed in facilities meant for three hundred thousand people.
  • 5 In Brazil the current maximum punishment for young offenders ages 12 to 18 is three years in detention youth centers. Experts say many turn to crime after being recruited by criminal gang members who want to avoid harsher penalties for themselves.
  • Although the controversial bill still needs to be approved by Brazil’s Congress, a recent Datafolha poll showed that 87 percent of Brazilians favor lowering the age of imprisonment.