Author

Didrikh M.P.

Title of article

On the issue of sufficiency of police powers in the field of protecting minors from domestic violance

Section

Section 12. The problems of legal science and law enforcement practice: young researchers’ view

Issue, year

3 (33) 2015

Abstract

Each day numerous Russian children become victims of cruel treatment, though our system of child protection is regarded as rather developed. Violence is morally substantiated and accepted as a method of children upbringing in our country. The existing practice of upbringing, basing on the method of physical forcing, is criticized. Different problems of the official activities of juvenile divisions, providing protection of children from domestic violence, are considered. According to the effective legislation police has restricted (insufficient) powers in the field of protecting minors from domestic violence, which doesn’t allow police officers to conduct effective and preventive work with problem families. The current situation contradicts one of the main police functions – to protect life, liberty, property, human rights and internal security. Some proposals on solving this problem are made: to refer using of violence (beating) to the category of cases of public prosecution (also when mother of the child is the only victim); to delegate guardianship agencies’ powers to take children from family in situations dangerous to their life and health to social emergency services; to empower police officers to initiate the termination of parental rights; to add the provision, imposing responsibility for covering up crimes committed against minors, to the Article 316 of the RF Criminal Code; to obligate medical facilities to provide police officers with information on mental health of citizens, having children and being put on preventive register; to fix the list of grounds for providing compulsory medical treatment for alcohol or drug abusers having children.

Keywords

minor, domestic violence, cruel treatment, private prosecution, juvenile inspector, emergency services, guardianship agencies, termination of parental rights, police.

References

1. Gandzhi P. Issledovanie semeynykh faktorov, vliyayushchikh na nasilie nad det’mi so storony roditeley [The research of the family factors affecting child abuse by parents]. Molodoy uchenyy – The young scientist, 2013, no. 7, pp. 366-368.

2. Vladimirskiy-Budanov M.F. Obzor istorii russkogo prava [An overview of the history of Russian law]. Rostovon-Don, Feniks Publ., 1995. 640 p.

3. Roditeli i deti. Nasilie nad det’mi v sem’e [The Parents and the children. Violence against children in the family]. Rossiyskaya gazeta – Russian newspaper, 2014, 28 July.

4. Ivanov A. Arestovan podozrevaemyy v ubiystve detey v Nizhnem Novgorode [The suspect in the murder of children in Nizhny Novgorod is arrested]. Rossijskaja gazeta – Russian newspaper, 2015, 6 August.

5. Tyumenskiy ombudsmen Galina Kalyuzhnaya prokommentirovala nashu-mevshuyu istoriyu s iz”yatiem malyshey iz sem’i Shadrinykh [Tyumen Ombudsman Kalyuzhnaya, Galina commented on our-mawsoo the story of the removal of children from Shadrin’s family]. Komsomol’skaya рravda – Komsomol truth, 2015, 23 June.

6. Snyman C. Criminal Law. Fifth Edition. Durban: LexisNexis, 2008. 625 p.

7. Sledstvennyy komitet RF predlagaet vvesti ugolovnuyu otvetstvennost’ za ukryvatel’stvo nasiliya nad det’mi [The investigative Committee of the Russian Federation proposes to introduce criminal liability for concealment of child abuse]. Available at: http://www.garant.ru/news/430505/ (Accessed 20 August 2015).