Ungdomsbrottslighet under omförhandling - Ett rättsanalytiskt arbete om synen på unga lagöverträdare i Sverige och i Danmark

Sammanfattning: The penalty discount for young offenders in chapter 29, 7 § of The Swedish Penal Code, which prescribes that the youth of the accused should be given particular consideration when determining the penalty, has endured debate for a long period of time. On the 13th of December 2017 an inquiry was summoned by the Swedish Government to propose how the penalty discount regarding young offenders between the ages 18-21 could be abolished. In 2019, the proposal also became one of the 34 measures to combat gang crime in the 34-point programme presented by the Swedish Government. The criminal policy debate often includes expressions of dissatisfaction with the Swedish criminal justice system, which is considered too mild. In this context there is a certain tendency to compare Swedish criminal law with Danish criminal law. On the 17th of November 2021 the Swedish Parliament approved the Government’s proposal, which means that the penalty discount will be abolished for young adults who commit serious offences. The main purpose of this thesis is to investigate and analyze the legal regulation regarding young offenders in Sweden and in Denmark, to identify similarities and differences between the legal systems and to investigate the underlying motives to each regulation. Furthermore, the purpose is to investigate why the Swedish Government has chosen to deviate from previous motives and reform the regulation for young offenders. A prominent difference between the two countries is that Denmark does not give offenders in the age category 18–21 any leniency. However, the special treatment of young offenders that exists in each legal system is similarly justified by prevention, proportionality and humanity. Despite the fact that juvenile delinquency is statistically declining and that the proposal to repeal the penalty discount is not supported by any scientific research, the proposal has had a major impact which appears to be related to the development of crime. As lethal violence with the use of firearms have increased, the view on young offenders and their criminal roles seems to have changed as well as the political attitudes.