Overview
- Sergey Rybalchenko suggested recognizing minors who repeatedly commit violent offenses as fully capable so they could be prosecuted as adults.
- He said forced emancipation should be considered after offenses against life or health and only if a teen shows no change, not immediately after a first crime.
- The Lipetsk case, in which two teens who filmed an assault of a 62-year-old received suspended sentences, was cited as evidence that current penalties lack deterrence.
- Under current Russian law emancipation at 16 or older is voluntary, and any coercive mechanism would require judicial involvement and legislative changes that have not been introduced.
- Lawyer Dmitry Grigoriadi called the proposal legally incoherent and counterproductive, warning of harms from adult incarceration and urging restorative justice and prevention-focused measures.