Sexual Assault Committed Against a 14-Year-Old and Released on Grounds of Reconciliation with the Victim

In recent years, certain problems have emerged in judicial practice regarding the protection of children's rights, particularly concerning certain crimes committed against them and cases where the offender is exempted from criminal liability on the basis of express remorse or reconciliation. This was mentioned by Ruslan Marandyan, head of the Legal Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, during a press conference on the topic of "Against Sexual Violence and Exploitation of Children."

“In this regard, our attention has been drawn to children aged 14 to 16, and we have had cases where an individual who committed sexual assault against a child of this age range was released from criminal responsibility on the grounds of reconciliation. Why does this issue concern us? It is known that even 14-16-year-old children, due to their level of social development, physiological characteristics, and intellectual abilities, are limited in their agency. In cases of reconciliation, when we base the exemption from criminal liability on the child's expressed will, there must be a fully conscious and independent expression, which simply cannot be present in the case of 14-16-year-old children,” Marandyan stated.

He further emphasized that considering international experience, the state's response to crimes in this area is always conducted through public prosecution, rather than private prosecution. Therefore, the general approach should be that the exemption of the perpetrator from criminal liability should not depend on the child's expression of will. “Moreover, we are particularly focused on Articles 81 and 82 of the Criminal Code, specifically regarding exemption from criminal liability on the basis of express remorse and release from liability on grounds of reconciliation with the victim. Importantly, Article 82 includes an exception; that is, when the crime has elements of domestic violence, reconciliation is prohibited. There is also a fixed age threshold; in cases involving children under 14, the situation is clear. Our discussions with specialists have shown that even in situations where the case includes elements of domestic violence but also other components, judicial practice has gone in a direction where instead of emphasizing domestic violence, the focus has been shifted to other circumstances, and as a result, the offender has been released from criminal liability based on reconciliation, which is unjustifiable,” he noted.