Age

Introduction to Age

A perpetrator’s youth has long been a defense to criminal charges because children are deemed incapable of making rational decisions for which they should be held accountable. Under the common law, a child under 7 years of age is deemed too young to be criminally responsible. A child between the ages of 7 and 14 cannot be convicted of crime without proof that he or she knows the difference between right and wrong. A child 14 years of age or older is deemed sufficiently mature to be criminally responsible in most circumstances.

Many jurisdictions have abandoned these arbitrary common law categories and have enacted statutes describing juvenile crime. Under these statutes children under a specified age (which varies from state to state) who commit crimes are considered guilty of delinquency rather than a criminal act, based on the theory that children need help more than punishment. Some statutes, however, allow for youths to be tried as adults for serious crimes, such as murder, rape, and armed robbery.” (1)

Defenses to Crimes: Age

Mark A. Drumbl wrote the following:

“In line with settled international legal aspirations, as articulated by article 1 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), (…) eighteen as the transition point from childhood to adulthood. That said, very few national systems embrace eighteen as the baseline age at which criminal responsibility begins to be affixed. Nearly all states set the national age of criminal responsibility lower. Minors can bear criminal responsibility. To be precise: whereas adult criminal responsibility largely begins at the age of eighteen, juvenile criminal responsibility begins earlier; in some national jurisdictions, however, juveniles may be tried as adults in serious cases.

All states, however, recognize that there is an age below which criminal responsibility is impossible. Fourteen seems to be a common categorical line; however, this is far from ubiquitous or generalizable. To this end, the bulk of the conversation about juvenile justice involves how to approach and engage the individual in the developmentally kinetic band of adolescence from, roughly, fourteen to seventeen years of age.

Juvenile rights activists have focused their efforts on the Straight 18 position, that is, establishing eighteen as the baseline for the transition to adulthood While this push is intended to protect all those below this bright- line, it also means that the law comes down quite harshly on the person who is eighteen or a few years older.

Put differently, the categorical approach may indulge (and infantilize) certain persons under the age of eighteen (a bearable outcome), but may also be rather exigent for persons over the age of eighteen (a less bearable outcome). Neurobiological and neuro-scientific research demonstrates that the brain continues to develop well past the age of eighteen— indeed, up
to the age of twenty- five— when it comes to several elements germane to assessing
responsibility under the criminal law, notably, impulse control and capacity to fully appreciate the consequences of oneÂ’s actions. (The Association internationale de droit pénale noted by resolution that the ‘state of adolescence can be prolonged into young adulthood (25 years)Â’ and, therefore, specific legislation should be adopted for young adults. Dünkel also notes that the Netherlands recently increased the scope of juvenile justice to the age of 23).

Political Age: Voting Age

There is some information about the voting age in this entry.

Age in 2011

United States views on international law (based on the document “Digest of U.S. Practice in International Law”): In 2011, the United States participated in two sessions of the United Nations Open-Ended Working Group on Ageing. The intervention of the United States at the April session is available at (internet link) usun.state.gov/briefing/statements/2011/161145.htm. On August 4, 2011 Courtney Nemroff, U.S. Counselor for Economic and Social Affairs, delivered the U.S. closing statement at the August session of the Working Group. Ms. Nemroff’s statement, excerpted below, is available in full at (internet link) state.gov/s/l/c8183.htm.

Developments

We come away from this week’s session with the belief that a consensus has been reached in the Working Group on the need for further, concerted, multilateral action on these issues. Although some member states support a new treaty devoted to the rights of older persons and other new mechanisms, no consensus on these options has emerged from the April or August Open-Ended Working Group sessions. And many States have not yet joined the discussion to articulate their positions.

As we indicated on Monday, the United States believes that States should be informed, not only by the very important deliberations of the Working Group, but also by the results of the ten-year review of the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing, before taking a decision on whether a convention or other new mechanism is needed.

Details

However, we would like to stress that that does not mean that nothing can or should be done on these issues between now and 2012. As panelists, delegations and other participants have noted, there are many actions that can be taken in the near term, without a new instrument or mechanism, to make a meaningful contribution to addressing the problems of the abuse of the rights of older persons and the challenges of the rapidly ageing populations in many countries. For example, along with the EU and others here, we support encouraging existing mandate holders to give the necessary attention to the rights of older persons within their mandates. We hope that the Working Group can focus on these near-term steps in a future session, while continuing its work to determine whether additional measures to strengthen the protection of the human rights of older persons are necessary in the longer term.

Under Weight For Age, Children Under Age Five (in the Human Development Area)

In this context, Under Weight For Age, Children Under Age Five means:

includes moderate underweight (defined as between two and three standard deviations below the median weight-forage of the reference population), and severe underweight (defined as more than three standard deviations below the median weight-for-age of the reference population).

Under Height For Age, Children Under Age Five (in the Human Development Area)

In this context, Under Height For Age, Children Under Age Five means:

includes moderate stunting (defined as between two and three standard deviations below the median height-for-age of the reference population), and severe stunting (defined as more than three standard deviations below the median height-for-age of the reference population).

Age

Resources

See Also

• International Human Rights
• Discrimination
• Age

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See Also

• Social Protection
• Social Security
• Employment Affairs
• Welfare State
• Aged
• Occupational Pension Scheme

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See Also

• e.g. Age of consent
• Age of majority
• Legal age
• Majority

Resources

Notes and References

• Information about Age in the Encarta Online Encyclopedia

Guide to Age

In this Section

Criminal Law Elements (including Wrongful Act and Mental Fault), Defenses to Crimes (including Insanity, Age, Intoxication, Duress, Mistake, Self-Defense and Entrapment) and Crime Parties (including Principals and Accessories).