Peer-reviewed article
Neuro-Protective Criminal Justice: A New Paradigm For Child Criminal Responsibility And Protection
Vience Ratna Multiwijaya, Setiyono Setiyono, Rini Purwaningsih, Muhamad Adystia Sunggara, Arini Azka Muthia ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-sonnet-5-5This article looks at how criminal justice systems decide whether a child is responsible for a crime. It argues that fixed age thresholds ignore what is known about brain development, impulse control and limited decision making in children. Using a legal analysis of Indonesian law, it proposes a 'neuro-protective' model that stresses rehabilitation, restorative justice, therapeutic support and diversion. It concludes that Indonesia should require an analysis of a child's neurological development throughout juvenile criminal proceedings.
Key points
- Age-based criminal responsibility does not adequately reflect children's vulnerability to social and structural influences.
- Many justice systems rely on fixed age thresholds and formal legal capacity and often disregard neuroscientific evidence.
- The article proposes neuro-protection as a foundational principle of child criminal justice.
- The proposed framework prioritises rehabilitation, prevention of neurological and psychological harm, and long-term developmental well-being through restorative justice, therapeutic interventions and diversion.
- Indonesia should introduce regulations requiring neurological development analysis in juvenile criminal proceedings and reform practices across all components of its legal system.
Limitations
This is a normative legal analysis based on statutes, concepts and comparison, so it does not test any intervention or measure outcomes for children. The abstract gives no empirical data on how the proposed model would work in practice.
Abstract
Contemporary criminal justice systems predominantly assess child criminal responsibility through fixed age thresholds and formal legal capacity while often disregarding neuroscientific evidence concerning brain development, impulse regulation, and limited decision making capacity. This article proposes neuro protective criminal justice that integrates neuroscience, neurolaw, and child centered human rights into criminal law policy. The study aims to examine the conceptual foundation of neuro protective criminal justice, analyze child criminal liability under Indonesian law, and develop a model of neurological protection within the child criminal justice system. This research employs a normative juridical method using statutory, conceptual, and comparative approach. The analysis demonstrates that age based responsibility doesn’t adequately reflect children’s vulnerability to social and structural influences. It argues for a framework that prioritizes rehabilitation, prevention of neurological and psychological harm, and long term developmental well being through restorative justice, therapeutic interventions, and diversion. This study positions neuro protection as a foundational principle of child criminal justice while providing normative guidance for legal reform consistent with neuroscientific knowledge and international child protection standards. The study concludes that Indonesia should introduce regulations requiring neurological development analysis throughout juvenile criminal proceedings and reform legal practices across all components of its legal system.