The Public Prosecutor's Office warns that more and more crimes are being committed before the age of 14 and calls for more "early intervention"

BarcelonaRecords show that crimes committed by minors are on the decline, but the Public Prosecutor's Office warns of the opposite. There are more and more crimes that cannot be prosecuted because the offender is under 14 years old and, therefore, does not reach the age of criminal responsibility. These cases do not appear in the counts of convictions for minors, but there are more and more of them. Last year they rose by 74%, according to the count of the State Attorney General's Office: last year 7,749 cases were archived because the offender was unaccountable, while in 2023 there were 4,448. "The age of commission of criminal acts is progressively lowering," warns the report of the Public Prosecutor's Office that was presented this Thursday.

The document does not specify what type of crimes predominate among the cases that ended up archived because the perpetrator was too young. It does specify the proceedings for adolescents between 14 and 17 years old, where it warns of a 35% increase in sexual offenses. Also growing significantly, by 15.2%, are crimes of violence against women committed by minors. "The great efforts being made in equality training are not taking hold among young people," adds the report of the Public Prosecutor's Office.

In addition, the Public Prosecutor's Office warns of a significant growth in bullying offenses, which have increased by 17.6%. Prosecutors specializing in minors call for a reflection on the "lack of precise mechanisms" to give minors the necessary tools to manage their frustration, taking into account the increase in crimes before the age of 14. "Reality shows that the involvement of these minors in violent and sexualized behaviors demonstrates to us that the demand for early and multidisciplinary intervention is becoming more relevant every day," they claim.

Protection

Regarding minors, the Public Prosecutor's Office has a dual role: on one hand, to demand measures for those who have committed crimes; on the other, to ensure protection by the State when a child is helpless. In this sense, the public ministry notes a "deficit in prevention and care" to avoid the chronification of abandonment situations.

The report also notes the upward trend of risk situations for children, which it mainly attributes to an increase in migration. In fact, it assesses that the massive arrivals of unaccompanied minors to the State are "transforming the management of child protection in Spain".

Hate crimes, especially on the internet

The Public Prosecutor's Office's annual report also points to an increase in hate crime investigations, which grew by 15.3% last year compared to 2023. Furthermore, it highlights that nearly 60% of these crimes are committed on social networks or internet platforms.

One of the legal reform proposals made by the Public Prosecutor's Office in its report is related to discrimination. Specifically, it asks to harmonize the discrimination factors included in the Penal Code with those recognized by the equal treatment law, which is broader, to expressly incorporate the grounds for discrimination that do not yet have "homogeneous recognition" in the law. The proposal would involve adding to the Penal Code forms of discrimination that are already in other laws or that are recognized in practice. Although the Public Prosecutor's Office does not specify them in the report, some of these grounds for discrimination are gender expression and aporophobia.