RETRACTED ARTICLE: Mechanisms for protecting children’s rights and the role of psychological services in the juvenile justice system of Russia against the background of international practices

Abstract

Background

The study examines children’s rights as a social and legal institution, adapting to the modern context, associated with new views on the psychology of the child and his legal personality. In addition, the study raises the question of the role of medical psychology and psychological practice in the juvenile justice system of Russia from the point of view of the foundations of legal regulation. The research outlines the problems of the implementation of the protection of children’s rights in Russia and suggestions for the legislative improvement of the mechanism. Through the use of the interpretative approach, the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child is considered as a source of soft law, requiring pluralization of practice pursuant to international rules.

Results

The comparison of the two key approaches to the Convention, the dual status of the child and the public/private dilemma, is a basis for studying current problems in Russia through discourses on rights of a child. The comparison highlights the limitations and peculiarities common to both Russia and foreign states clarifying possible strategies for improving the implementation of rights of a child in different countries. The article examines the current legislation, which sets incentives for the development of the juvenile justice system. The foreign experience has been analyzed and the possibility of its implementation into the national legal system has been considered. It was the legal norms that the research was based on. The analytical framework of the study relies on both qualitative and quantitative methodologies. The aim of the current research is to analyze the degree of protection of children’s rights in Russia, as well as the system of juvenile justice. This required the assessment of the current political and cultural context, as well as the moral aspect that affects the development of the mechanism for protecting children’s rights in Russia.

Conclusions

The practical significance of the research carried out implies the possibility of using the results obtained in the development of legislative acts in the field of protecting the rights of children and the juvenile justice system.

Background

Protection of children’s rights remains one of the most acute challenges that modern societies are faced with. Despite numerous efforts made by the authorities and civil society to improve the mechanism for the protection of children, strategies, directed to the issues of the education of children with disabilities, interventions with children in conflict with the law, and prevention children from violence and neglect in families have not been resolved (Goldson and Muncie 2015).

The state is the supreme guardian of the child (parens patriae). Mentions of juveniles and their special treatment by the state can be traced through the prism of history (Cherkasov et al. 2015; Desmet et al. 2015). The word “juvenile” comes from “juvenis,” which means young and delineates a certain period of a person’s life (Baldry et al. 2019).

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (The United Nations 1989) has been ratified by all European countries and has strengthened the culture of children’s rights at the European (especially Western) level. However, the results cannot be described as effective after more than 30 years since the adoption of the Convention. There are reasons both to celebrate the success of the Convention and to mourn its failure to protect the rights of all children no matter where they live (Liefaard and Sloth-Nielsen 2017). Besides that, in juvenile justice, violations of children’s rights are ubiquitous, and it is assumed that over the past decade there has been a regression rather than stagnation (Goldson and Muncie 2015; Goldson 2019). Society wonders to what extent children’s rights can contribute to a universal definition of the juvenile justice system (Liefaard 2015).

Most developed countries solve the problem of child crime prevention and protection of children’s rights with the help of their juvenile justice system. Juvenile justice is a system of state bodies and institutions, local authorities, human rights organizations and institutions that were created to protect the rights, freedoms and interests of children and the youth, and to re-socialize children in difficult living conditions; it also includes judicial authorities administering justice to children through social and psycho-pedagogical methods (Liefaard 2016). At the same time, in addition to traditional preventive and punitive functions, juvenile justice institutions in developed countries perform restorative, rehabilitation, pacification, and resocialization functions (Cunneen et al. 2018).

Child-friendly justice is now a well-established concept in the European juvenile justice system used to determine the extent to which children’s rights are protected in judicial and other decision-making processes (Lipsey et al. 2010). The content and language of child-friendly justice are linked to the Council of Europe Child Friendly Justice Guidelines, a soft law instrument adopted by the European Commission in 2010 (Council of Europe 2010). Being based on international law, including the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights, the Guidelines were the first tool to comprehensively present key elements of the justice system from the children’s rights perspective (Dünkel 2015).

The concepts of juvenile justice are set out in the contemporary models of the juvenile justice system, operating in different countries of the world and determining the nature of the impact on the behavior of the child (Zimring et al. 2015). The juvenile justice system models are classified in accordance with the following three criteria: (1) institutional (a certain set (system) of bodies and institutions for children in difficult life circumstances), (2) functional (determines the tasks and content of the activity of the specified system), and (3) legal (a system of substantive and procedural rules that enshrine the child’s special legal status) (Goldson and Hughes 2010). Juvenile justice systems are classified based on the manifestation, nature and combination of each of the aforecited criteria (Zimring et al. 2015).

The rights of the child and his special legal status must be implemented through the effective functioning of social and legal guarantees and the effective operation of institutional bodies (Atkinson et al. 2017). In terms of the protection of children’s rights and the juvenile justice system in Russia, there exists a problem of discrepancy between the rights declared by the law and the rights implemented in fact, which is initially observed in the sphere of juvenile justice that considers juveniles as vulnerable legal subjects (Moran et al. 2011).

Compliance with the law and understanding of court decisions depend on the child’s cognitive maturation and psychosocial development (Tisdall and Kay 2015). In this respect, the child develops their orientation towards the law (rule of law) and legal authorities at an early age, and early orientation shapes the behavior of both adolescents and adults (Fagan and Tyler 2005). In addition to psychosocial reasons, the pedagogical prerequisites in the juvenile justice field should also be taken into account. Obviously, decisions made by a juvenile judge must be supported by parents and children to enhance their educational impact (Baldry et al. 2019). Pedagogical theories and practices claim that non-pedagogical measures against children are unacceptable (Goldson 2019; Vanobbergen 2015).

A separate issue is the factor of psychological characteristics and problems of adolescents in the juvenile justice system and its impact on the dispensation of justice. Over the past 10 years, in the USA alone, among adolescents who attended juvenile justice services, up to 70% of young people had diagnosable mental health problems. This is consistent with other studies that indicate an overrepresentation of young people with mental disorders, and for several years, the statistics did not decrease (Development Services Group, Inc. 2017). Herewith, the prevalence of mental disorders in children and adolescents worldwide is almost 15% (Bruha et al. 2018). Of course, specialized juvenile courts (judges) should form the basis of juvenile justice. However, it is obvious that, given the specifics of the cases they are considering, they can work successfully only with the help of psychological services, teaching staff, social workers (Zimring et al. 2017).

Thus, the purpose of the study is to analyze the status and effectiveness of the mechanism for protecting children’s rights in Russia, to conduct its comparison with the child protection laws of other states, as well as of the current system of juvenile justice. A separate aspect of this study is devoted to the problems of psychological assistance and the place of medical psychology in the juvenile justice system in the Russian Federation against the background of world practices. At the same time, the research implies to develop the offers for improving the juvenile justice system in Russia based on a thorough analysis of world practices in the field of children’s rights protection.

Methods

The study comprehensively considers the advantages and disadvantages of the modern child empowerment movement, which has attempted to supplant paternalistic juvenile justice. For the purpose of a systematic study of the problem of protecting children’s rights and juvenile justice, a focus is placed on the perspective of juvenile justice procedural rules. The research relies on the method of critical analysis of four important aspects of the modern point of view of procedural justice in relation to juvenile justice: (1) the need to exercise rights (in terms of legal guarantees for their implementation); (2) the necessity to study the “double perspective” with respect to children’s rights implying both juvenile justice employees and citizens (or children in conflict with the law); (3) the right of the child to effectively participate in the trial; and (4) the idea that feelings and perceptions of justice “develop” throughout life and that, as a consequence, age matters and should matter in judicial responses to crime and legal judgment. In addition, the study examines the role of medical psychology and psychological practice in the juvenile justice system of Russia from the point of view of the foundations of legal regulation.

However, before theorizing children’s rights, an empirical understanding of how children’s rights are implemented in everyday life is of paramount importance. The research issue is not only whether children’s rights are implemented (or not) in day-to-day justice practices, but above all how they affect or shape the juvenile justice system, and how they are treated by both children in conflict with the law and competent specialists, involved in resolving a conflict situation. Thus, the juvenile justice system and the mechanism for protecting the rights of children in Russia will be reconsidered and reoriented.

The research is based on the studies by both domestic researchers and scientists from progressive European countries and the USA in the field of child crime, protection of children’s rights and the child justice system. The study problem is the analytical and explanatory power of high-concept narratives and defects inherent in conceptual and theoretical reports that favor transnational/pan-European focus. Juvenile justice in Europe is differentiated at the international and national/subnational level, which requires a more thorough critical investigation and detailed interaction with a range of complexities.

Results

Normative regulation of the protection of children’s rights in Russia and the ways to develop it

Having adopted and ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, Russia undertook an international obligation to bring domestic legislation into conformity with the Convention. The document ratification has dramatically changed federal laws in the field of protecting the rights and interests of children. Thus, the provision of the Declaration on the Rights of the Child, which states that due to his/her physical and mental unripeness, a child needs special protection and care, including proper legal protection both before and after birth, has become one of the major principles of the legislation of the Russian Federation on children.

In the Russian legislation, the foundations of national legislation were created in order to fulfill international obligations, and the amendments were made to improve the mechanism for protecting the rights and interests of children. Thus, the following acts have been passed: the Federal Law On Basic Guarantees of the Rights of the Child in the Russian Federation of June 24, 1998 (State Duma 1998), No. 124-FZ; the Family Code of Russia (Chapter 11 (The Rights of Minors Children) covering the issues of children’s rights and the mechanism for their protection) (State Duma 1995); the Federal Law On the Foundations of the System for the Prevention of Neglect and Juvenile Delinquency of June 24, 1999, No. 120-FZ (State Duma 1999); the Federal Law On Additional Guarantees for Social Support for Orphans and Children Deprived of Parental Care of December 21, 1996, No. 159-FZ (State Duma 1996); the Federal Law On Guardianship of April 24, 2008, No. 48-FZ (State Duma 2008). According to Article 38.1 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, motherhood, childhood, and the family are under the protection of the state (The Government of the Russian Federation 1993). That is, the norms of the Russian legislation in the field of child protection correspond to the provisions of the Convention and the Universal Declaration of the Rights of the Child. They highlight the importance and necessity of special support for and assistance to the institution of motherhood and the family, the creation of special conditions for its due functioning and the harmonious upgrowth of each child taking into account his or her physiological characteristics.

Thus, the following rights have been formalized: the child’s right to live and to be raised in a family; the right to be protected; right to freedom of expression; the right to health; the right to education; the right to housing; the right to a standard of living adequate for physical, mental, spiritual, moral, and social development. The state has recognized childhood as the most important stage in the life of every person; it is guided by the principles of the priority of preparing a child for adult life in society, developing socially significant and creative activity in him or her, as well as fostering estimable moral qualities, the sense of patriotism and citizenship.

However, the proclamation and legislative consolidation of children’s rights do not always correspond to what is being implemented. In addition, current Russian legislation hinders the sequential implementation of international regulations. The above is reflected in such aspects as lack of rules related to the reintegration of children into families, fragmented public control, and absence of due legal support for parents. The analysis of the actual legal regulations testifies to the continuity between the late Soviet practice and the modern approaches of the authorities relatively opposing the interests of both children and parents.

The Family Code of the Russian Federation stipulates an administrative basis for taking a child away from parents (Article 77). The measure began to be implemented in the second half of the 2000s: the share of taken-away children increased, as well as the number of parents whose parental rights were terminated (Bystrova and Tcherni 2015; Dutkiewicz et al. 2009).

Despite the legal order that restricts parental rights, the courts support the position of authorities, and parents lack procedures ensuring a fair trial: there is no balance between expert opinions and consistent legal support for parents. The decision regarding the subsequent placement of the child is made by the medical psychological and pedagogical commission that deals with children with disabilities, the Commission on Minors’ Affairs and Protection of the Rights of Minors in Conflict with the Law, and local guardianship authorities dealing with abused and neglected children. Such an approach significantly limits the options for transparent procedures; in particular, this refers to children whose interests may only be represented by their legal representatives since the administrative authorities are more concerned in “troubled children” taking away.

Since the late 2000s, the behavior of parents and children has been criminalized in connection with the introduction of new norms. Thus, there were introduced juvenile curfew laws and parental liability in case of violation and there were strengthened criminal measures against parents convicted of inhuman treatment of children and responses to sexual offenses against minors. Several trials over “reckless and dangerous” parents have generated widespread public outcry. Several court cases against “irresponsible and dangerous” parents have generated widespread public outcry and influenced the discourse on privacy and its boundaries (Bystrova and Tcherni 2015).

Liberalization in the field of protecting the rights of the child and expanding the boundaries of child behavior in Russia is faced with a movement against juvenile justice. Advocates of the campaign against juvenile justice make their arguments based on the two intertwined suppositions: “the child has to be permanently controlled” and “only parent entitled with the right to control the child.” They believe that a child who is aware of their rights will abuse them and perceive any remark from adults as infringement of personal rights (Ivanov 2008; Moran et al. 2011). Despite opposed views, both proponents and opponents of child liberalization agree on a simplified approach to international law: either ignoring the resolution the conflict between core values necessity or refusing of its use due to equivocal and generalized criteria (Goldson 2019) The absence of a reflexive approach to international regulations matches with a relatively new trend in the children’s protection—the development of measures designated to monitor the public sphere, which poses a danger to the younger generation.

The Law on the Protection of Children from Information Harmful to Their Health and Development (State Duma 2010) introduced censorship aimed at limiting minors’ access to the media in order to uphold the keeping of traditional values. For instance, the governmental intentions are directed to protect children from information that denies traditional family values, in particular information related to non-traditional sexual relationships.

A moral and legal approach to the Convention on the Rights of the Child requires that the desired institutional change be linked to the appropriate ideological foundations. For example, a reduction in the number of children in residential institutions implies that governmental bodies accept the dual status of a child and effect appropriate policy and practices to achieve a balance between “to be a child” and “to become a child.” Russia is still implementing child protection reform, implying placing children from governmental institutions in foster families, contrary to returning them to biological parents. It should be emphasized the administrative nature of decision-making related to the protection of children from irresponsible parents. Besides that, there are no transparent procedures in the process, and the application of international standards is reduced to formal discussions. The actual family crisis intervention system hinders the introduction of sustainable and flexible approaches, including those related to the provision of assistance to children and the regulation of parental rights. Combined with opaque decision-making, weaknesses in the responsibility of authorities to intervene in a timely manner hinder the development of alternatives to the existing system.

The system of juvenile justice in Russia among up-to-date models

On a global scale, there are certain systems of juvenile justice that successfully operate; these have common features and are grouped into four models: Anglo-American, Continental, Scandinavian, and Asian.

• 1. The Anglo-American model is focused primarily on the Anglo-Saxon legal system. In some American states, the juvenile court system is separate, while in others, it closely and systematically interacts with various human services or probation agencies. In some parts of the USA, the application of the juvenile justice system can be traced at the state police level, which means that the case does not go to court. Law enforcers have great discretionary powers when dealing with minors (Godfrey et al. 2017; Goldson and Muncie 2015). In England and Wales, the age of criminal responsibility is 10 years old. But there are other interventions that can be applied to children of this age who break the law (Cunneen et al. 2018).

• 2. The continental model relies mainly on the application of educational and pedagogical measures to child offenders, and unless they are effective, the state applies criminal sanctions (Gorgen et al. 2013). The German juvenile justice system is a vivid example of the system. The French juvenile justice system, which also belongs to the continental model, deals with both juvenile delinquents and children at risk. The child protection system in this country is based on two bodies. The administrative authority is represented by various departments and services; it prefers preventive measures and works closely with the child’s family environment. The criminal authority takes action against the offender. These relationships develop with the active participation of juvenile courts and prosecutors, as well as lawyers specializing in juvenile cases (Fergusson 2016).

The Scandinavian model of juvenile justice is characterized by the absence of specially created juvenile courts. Instead, their powers are entrusted to social services, which are actively involved in the investigation of misconduct committed by minors themselves and child-related misconduct. In Sweden, the police and social services closely interact with each other, and there is a specially created youth department at each police station. Each local court is obliged to have a judge who specializes in juvenile justice issues. Besides that, in the prosecutor’s office, there should be prosecutors specializing in juvenile issues. Proceeding from the severity of the crime, the juvenile could be sent to a social rehabilitation center that could be considered as acceptable alternative to jail. Thereby, up to the age of 18, a person cannot be sent to places of detention, but can only be placed in a closed educational institution (Lappi-Seppälä 2016).

Another relatively separate model of juvenile justice is the Asian one. As in Western jurisdictions, child-related legislation is focused primarily on the rehabilitation of the offender and their re-socialization; it does not aim to punish the offender (Huck et al. 2012). The Japanese society is characterized by the struggle for the future of the youth and the phenomenon of “groupism” (social orientation, personal devotion of the collective). In the country, there are family courts, which address cases relating the protection of the rights of children, as well as the offenses committed by them (Zimring et al. 2015). In the event of a tort, the child is treated by the law enforcement agencies (the police, prosecutors), who closely cooperate with parents, social services, psychologists, and probation authorities. Each of them studies the personality of the child and the conditions of his or her social environment. All data collected are given to the judge, who in turn decides whether to proceed with the trial or close the case (Baldry et al. 2019).

It should be recognized that the national systems of juvenile justice of the post-Soviet countries (except those of the Baltic countries) can be combined in a separate independent model—the transitional model. In turn, the model contains two subgroups: (a) transit administrative (Russia, Belarus, Azerbaijan, Tajikistan)—the specialization of courts or juvenile judges is not legally defined (there may be pilot projects to introduce juvenile courts in certain regions); there are quasi-judicial (administrative) bodies; (b) transit judicial centric (Kazakhstan, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan)—the specialization of courts or judges, prosecutors, investigators in the consideration of cases of minors is defined.

The independence of Russia has brought a number of changes, including to the system of the children’s rights protection. However, a separate juvenile justice system was never created. The new Criminal and Criminal Procedure Codes were adopted in 1996 and 2001. Russia has adopted several international agreements on minors, including the Convention on the Rights of the Child. In 2003, the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation issued a Resolution on the Application of Generally Recognized International Standards and Norms by Judges of General Jurisdiction confirming that in the event of a legal conflict between international treaties and Russian legislation, the priority should be given to international norms.

The discussion of juvenile correctional facilities in Russia has started (McAuley and MacDonald 2007). The explanation for the leniency among Russians is probably their idea of what awaits minors in correctional colonies. The negative factors associated with the placement of minors in penal colonies are a high risk of contracting such serious diseases as tuberculosis or AIDS, a high risk of relapse after release, and a high probability of becoming prisoners (Ivanov 2008).

Several Russian regions have succeeded in the local reform of the juvenile justice system (Dutkiewicz et al. 2009). The Rostov region and the Perm Territory have shown great results (Hakvaag 2009). Main reforms imply, in particular, the specialization of juvenile judges and the creation of juvenile courts, the participation of social workers in courts, and the coordination of approaches between the various agencies and actors involved in assisting minors at risk.

In the Perm Territory, a juvenile justice reform aimed at administering restorative justice began in 2002. The reform involved the creation of mediation programs, including specialized juvenile judges, social workers, mediators, and psychologists.

Thus, the priority has to be directed to social programs designated for juvenile delinquency prevention, as well as the provision of opportunities to those who are prone to commit crime. It is of utmost importance to support both the police and numerous social programs aimed at high-risk youth. School staff, social services, non-profit organizations, and society are required to make a great deal of effort. It is through exerting all powers that the integrity of the juvenile justice system can be maintained while providing appropriate alternatives to minors who cannot or will not obtain assistance. One problem tends to aggravate the severity of another, which makes it difficult to uncover the rehabilitation process. As can be seen from the diagram below, various aspects of work with minors should be put into effect as part of the juvenile justice system (Fig. 1).

Fig. 1

Elements of the juvenile justice system

Juvenile justice must take the idea of fairness into account throughout the decision-making process. Herewith, considering the development perspective, the Convention on the Rights of the Child finds grounds to protect the juvenile justice system. This right to a child justice system is based on the right of children to be treated with equity and respect for their needs. A child justice system can and should be based on age and the fact that treating children as adults would discriminate against them. After all, children do not possess the ambiguous developmental skills and life experiences that adults have and, as a result, have great difficulty coping with the inevitably harsh repressive system.

Treating children as adults can be protected from a purely forensic-philosophical point of view (the principle of equality) (Kormych 2020). However, from the perspective of procedural justice regardless of the age of the accused, junior defendants are discriminated against and their sense of justice is diminished. Therefore, whereas juvenile justice aims to encourage children to exercise their rights like adults and test a system in which they are treated with dignity and respect, judicial processes should be adapted and the age of the accused should be considered.

Placement of deviant minors in vocational rehabilitation centers is one of the ways of timely correction of deviant behavior. Minors in conflict with the law are sent to the above institutions by court decision. Today, it is one of the most effective alternatives to imprisonment to re-educate a minor. The institutions prioritize not only education, but also socially necessary labor as a method of re-education. These are custodial institutions, which do not allow a minor to communicate with their former environment and have a positive effect on their rehabilitation. Therefore, these institutions are one of the most effective alternatives aimed at the re-education of a delinquent minor, and they make it possible to avoid imprisonment. Thus, Russia should concentrate on the living conditions in educational institutions and the level of education in them. Many European states that have libraries, computer labs, and distance learning in prisons can become a good example. Thus, the level of social maladjustment, which is an extremely important factor in the further resocialization of a minor and their non-return to the criminal way of life, can be reduced.

The juvenile justice system in Russia must address and reconcile the challenges that have arisen and will continue to arise due to changing conditions, including, but not limited to, completely reformulated social security systems, an unfavorable social and economic environment, and an increasingly diverse and heterogeneous child and youth population.

Psychological aspects of juvenile criminal justice in Russia from the perspective of medical and forensic psychology

The activity of a psychologist in the juvenile justice system takes place within the framework of a particular model of juvenile justice. It should be noted that in world practice there are two main variants of such models. One of them is aimed at social support of the adolescent, providing him with optimal rehabilitation opportunities to compensate for developmental deficiencies in the past (Dozortseva 2010). This approach is partly provided for in the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974. At the same time, American practice, both normatively and organizationally, links juvenile justice with the prevention of delinquency among children and young people (Smoot 2019). In another version, taking into account age characteristics and respecting the rights of a minor, greater emphasis is placed on his responsibility for the committed unlawful acts. The elements of juvenile justice introduced in the Russian Federation, which are not based on a single legislation in this area, are still quite heterogeneous and are implemented within the framework of the traditionally existing common criminal process and the judicial system focused on determining guilt, responsibility, and punishment for a crime (Dozortseva 2010; Koocher and Kinscherff 2016). If, in the context under consideration, we confine ourselves to the problems of the criminal process, then in the sphere of the professional attention of the psychologist, first of all, the juvenile offender turns out to be. Psychologically, the rehabilitation of a teenager who has committed illegal acts and the prevention of repeated tort means working with a person as a regulator of social behavior. The psychologist should direct his efforts towards the disclosure and development of the healthy personal potential of a teenager, towards the formation and full functioning of the basic mechanisms of his personality—freedom and responsibility. (Dozortseva 2010).

Numerous studies confirm that a significant proportion of young people in the juvenile justice system suffer from a diagnosable mental disorder. Research has shown that, for example, in the USA, about two thirds of young people in prisons or prisons have at least one diagnosable mental health problem. Among other young people in the country, this figure ranges from 9 to 22% (Development Services Group, Inc. 2017). According to available data in Russia, among adolescent offenders, the number of persons with mental disorders, including age-related mental development disorders, is at least 50% of cases (Barylnik et al. 2016).

Western juvenile justice systems use a variety of tools to identify mental health needs, although most can be divided into two categories: screening and assessment. The purpose of screening is to identify young people who may need an immediate response to their mental health needs and to identify those who are more likely to need special attention (Vincent et al. 2008). The purpose of the assessment is to collect a more complete and individual profile of youth. The assessment is carried out on a selective basis with those young people with higher needs who are often identified through screening. Mental health assessments typically involve specialized clinicians and are usually more time consuming than screening tools (Development Services Group, Inc. 2017; Vincent et al. 2008).

It should be noted that in Russia, there are no such tools serving as a theoretical and methodological basis for measures to prevent crime among young people, but their elements are partially included in general criminological measures for preventing crime. Herewith, in the first case, it comes about the psychological component of prevention and, in the second, to a greater extent about the socio-pedagogical one.

Risk factors for the emergence of criminal activity among teenagers include alcoholism, antisocial personality deformation and criminality of relatives, psychopathic traits in parents in the form of mental rigidity with increased affective excitability, isolation, low self-esteem, decreased stress tolerance, and personality traits. It is also worth considering that the problem of child crime is closely related to the problem of homelessness and is directly dependent on a whole group of factors, such as the length of the period of neglect, the severity of mental disorders, the presence of organic symptoms (of varying severity), personality structure, and the age of the child (Barylnik et al. 2016).

In this regard, each time when considering materials on the placement of minors in a juvenile detention center, the question arises of providing psychological assistance to a child. Moreover, prevention authorities often appeal to the court with a petition to place a teenager in a juvenile detention center, in fact, explaining this by the fact that at the local level, proper psychological assistance to the child cannot be provided. The subjects of prevention directly refer to the fact that the psychological portrait of the child and the recommendations of a professional psychologist will help them in their further work with a minor. All this suggests that the initial component in the formation of an effective juvenile justice system should be professional psychological assistance to the family and the child, whose task will be to determine the causes and conditions of deviant behavior of the minor and the direction of further work of the subjects of prevention. Nevertheless, at this stage in Russia, there is no such vision of the situation even at the legislative level. Already according to Art. 4 of the Federal Law “On the Foundations of the System for Prevention of Neglect and Juvenile Delinquency,” any centers or services for psychological support of families and minors are not included in the prevention system. Educational institutions classified by law as subjects of prevention, on the basis of Part 2 of Art. 14 of the aforementioned law provide “social and psychological” assistance to minors, which already from the name indicates the unprofessional nature of such activities (Denisova 2018).

Also, the Law provides for the creation and development, on the basis of a network of mediation services, of an institute of social and psychological assistance to a minor in realizing and ameliorating guilt before a victim is provided for by the Federal Law On the Basics of a System for the Prevention of Neglect and Juvenile Delinquency (State Duma 2020). However, the Law does not specify what is meant by a “network of mediation services” and how such a network should be organized.

Discussion

Since the collapse of the USSR, Russia has witnessed a different range of bodies being involved in child protection (Kelly 2007). While the active growth of the nongovernmental sector became a decisive factor in the European child protection system, in Russia, child protection was centralized and state authorities were required to perform a number of varoius functions (Shmidt 2012). Nevertheless, the multiplicity of actors cannot specify child protection criteria and procedures to meet the main principles of international regulations (Liefaard and Sloth-Nielsen 2017). The actors themselves do not implement a plenty of approaches that recognize children’s rights as a multifunctional construct related to different concepts of a “child” and the rights and obligations of parents and the state (Fergusson 2016).

In the legal sphere, there are a lot of discussions about the negatives of juvenile justice and its implementation in Russia (Bernuz Beneitez and Dumortier 2018; Scott et al. 2016; Watkins 2018). The major negative is the ultimate state control over the institution of the family. In other words, juvenile justice workers can remove the child from the family when the parents are accused of abuse, inability to provide proper nutrition and toys, not going to infant-feeding centers, inadequate financial status, and the like (Hakvaag 2009; Ivanov 2008). Thus, society is frightened by the fact that families “will be deprived of children” as most families in Russia live below the poverty line. At the same time, people are also frightened by the fact that children will be able to call the juvenile service, report about parental abuse, or complain about other violations of their rights (Bystrova and Tcherni 2015; Desmet et al. 2015). Society is also worried that children will be able to manipulate their parents and use these opportunities unreasonably and promiscuously. But in reality, these fears are exaggerated and can be refuted. Juvenile justice objective implies protection of the violated rights of a person under 18.

The state monitoring of the family is defined as ensuring the basic rights of a child. That is, when juvenile justice workers record abuse, they will take action. Termination of parental rights or real government intervention in the institution of the family must be applied in exceptional cases and with an objective assessment of the situation in each family (Goldson and Muncie 2015). Non-observance of the rights of the child by their parents (beating, unfavorable living conditions, alcohol or drug addiction of parents, antisocial behavior towards a minor) results in the termination of parental rights and placement of the minor in specialized institutions. Sometimes, such actions on the part of the state save children in difficult life circumstances and provide the minor with an opportunity to further develop and be treated with dignity (Bernuz Beneitez and Dumortier 2018).

In Russia, under the current conditions, the juvenile justice system relies on the subjective opinions of representatives of its bodies; therefore, in a significant number of cases, the courts do not satisfy requests for placement in a juvenile detention center. In the absence of a professional psychological assessment in the court session, when considering such materials, the judge also relies on his personal opinion, for the formation of which the judge needs not only to receive detailed explanations from the representatives of the prevention system, parents, but also to find contact with the minor. To do this, it is often necessary to discuss the so-called common topics with the adolescent, to win over the minor to himself, to evoke emotional trust, etc. However, such techniques and methods do not fit into the existing procedural framework. Proceeding from this, it is permissible to assume that a trial involving minors should not be excessively regulated, and it is inappropriate to keep an audio recording or other fixation of such a process. Clear regulation, keeping records will not allow the judge to establish personal contact with the minor, to delve into the very essence of his problems, which can significantly affect the correctness of the court decision (Denisova 2018).

Meanwhile, western experience shows that a specialized juvenile justice system makes it possible to take into account the age characteristics of children and adolescents when considering a case and making a court decision. With this approach, the emphasis is on the predictive assessment of the further development of the adolescent. Based on it, social and psychological measures (preventive, corrective, rehabilitation, etc.) are planned and organized, aimed at the further successful development of a minor, which, in turn, helps to reduce the level of juvenile delinquency (Oshevsky et al. 2012).

With regard to child access to adapted (child-friendly) procedures in Europe, research shows that there are specialized juvenile courts in 20 EU jurisdictions. Some of these specialized juvenile courts consist of courtrooms that are physically separate from adult courts while others are conventional courts that are tailored to the needs of children, including the involvement of specialized judges (de Graaf et al. 2017; Mascherini et al. 2014). However, there are gaps in the competence or jurisdiction of the specialized courts, suggesting less than universal acceptance of the juvenile court model (Kennan and Kilkelly 2015). This is appropriate given that the Guidelines do not require the creation of a specialized juvenile court to deal with young offenders limiting provision to the recommendation that the member states should further develop the concept of specialized courts (de Graaf et al. 2017; Lappi-Seppälä 2016) It was also found that a small number of Member States have introduced specialization among prosecutors and lawyers dealing with children and young people involved in criminal proceedings, including the provision of training on children’s rights and needs (Kennan and Kilkelly 2015). Third-party access to criminal proceedings against children is restricted in all states where this information is recorded, and most Member States automatically delete these records after a certain period of time, although the period may depend on the type of crime, the conviction and/or whether the child has been re-convicted (Kennan and Kilkelly 2015).

Most European studies highlight an important concept of fair justice that encompasses children’s rights in the juvenile justice system (de Graaf et al. 2017; Guio et al. 2017). Herewith, the focus on the procedural rights of children and youth is an important reminder that fair trial and proper legal process issues are vital issues have made the Guidelines attractive outside Europe (Dünkel 2015).

In general, a study by the European Commission clarified the extent to which key elements of child-friendly justice are embedded in the laws and policies of the EU Member States (Atkinson et al. 2017; European Commission 2014). Certain good practice is evident in all areas, although there are great differences between and within Member States. The study emphasizes that while children’s rights are being increasingly introduced, in reality, children and young people have few unconditional rights as subjects of the criminal/juvenile justice process (European Commission 2014; Godfrey et al. 2017). Perhaps most importantly, research shows that it is the most vulnerable children who face particular barriers to accessing child-friendly justice, and this, combined with the adoption of justice approaches, remains a major challenge to be addressed in the future (Goldson 2019).

The framework for the development of juvenile justice created over the past decade by the US Supreme Court may prove very inspiring for further research on this issue in Europe and Russia, although the empirical basis of the framework definitely needs further reflection. However, there are three key points that substantiate the reasons for the application of different criminal sanctions to children and that form the basis for juvenile justice development: (1) children are less guilty than adults, (2) they have more potential for change, and (3) they are less able to manage the justice process (Scott et al. 2016).

As for the general principles of juvenile justice in developed countries, these are usually determined by the minimum age of criminal responsibility that exists in any country (Baldry et al. 2019). There is a similar difference in the point of exit from juvenile justice systems, that is, the stage at which young people are exposed to adult justice (Kennan and Kilkelly 2015). This is usually activated at the age of majority, which is 18 in most countries (Godfrey et al. 2017). Traditionally, this corresponds to the stage when young people are perceived as having more independence as they move into adulthood. It is important to recognize that school-to-work transitions are closely linked to other steps in young people’s journey to adulthood, such as leaving the parental home, finding a partner, and having children (Goldson 2019; Mascherini et al. 2014).

Ultimately, juvenile justice systems include dynamic and hybrid forms that are both time- and space-dependent and subject to widely differing ideological imperatives, political calculations, cultural priorities, judicial concepts, and operational strategies (Matthews and Minton 2018). There is no doubt that any attempt to map future development must take into account changes in juvenile justice in Russia.

Conclusions

All rights work for the benefit of human dignity and equality. However, there are numerous signals indicating that the social and economic rights of children, including those in conflict with the law, are rather problematic in the majority of juvenile justice systems. Subsequently, there exists a need for scientific research on children’s rights and their participation in justice in order to clarify the link between procedural fairness (unfairness) and social justice (or injustice) in relation to children and minors.

Speaking about the formation of juvenile justice in Russia as a social and legal institution that gives priority to the correction and rehabilitation of juvenile offenders before punishment, it should be noted the growing role of medical psychology and professional psychological assistance in this process. However, if in the context under consideration the psychologist has to confine himself to the problems of the criminal process, then in the sphere of his professional attention, first of all, the juvenile offender is found, which, in turn, can neutralize the efforts aimed at correction. Rehabilitation of a minor who has committed unlawful acts and the prevention of repeated tort in psychological terms means working with a person. Nevertheless, at this stage, for many countries, including Russia, it is not possible to overcome the barrier of “punitive” approaches and switch to a rehabilitation one.

At the same time, by itself, legislative consolidation of the procedure and conditions for the provision of professional psychological assistance is not enough. It is important to ensure the general availability of such assistance, to create a network of centers or institutions with professional workers, bringing these institutions as close as possible to the population. Such a psychologist will be able not only to provide important help to the family and the child in the early stages of “problematic,” but also to help the judge.

In order to develop fair justice, Russia should go beyond the narrow legal concept of justice and switch to the one that can combat injustice of any kind, whether of a criminal or social nature. This is particularly relevant in the context of young people that are affected by unjust policies. It is a social justice approach that can point the way forward.

Given recent events, it is unlikely that juvenile justice reforms in Russia will be implemented soon. At the same time, declining crime rates and a prolonged demographic crisis, which has driven the incarceration rate down to its lowest level in recent Russian history, suggest that juvenile incarceration will continue to fall.

There is a general trend in the importance of introducing restorative justice mechanisms in all models of juvenile justice, including mediation, cooperation with the society to ensure a fair trial of minors, and involvement of social services and probation authorities in the system of a comprehensive solution to the problems of juvenile delinquency and the protection of the rights of the child.

The research of practices and experience in the field of children’s rights in juvenile justice should determine the structure of research on mechanisms for the protection of children’s rights to be conducted in the nearest future. Ultimately, it will expand knowledge about why children obey the law, how to make them obey the law, and why adults should take children and their rights seriously.