Beltrame advocates for changes in the law for adolescents.
The Secretary of Public Security of Rio de Janeiro, José Mariano Beltrame, said that there needs to be a change in legislation regarding the treatment of adolescents in conflict with the law; the official did not explain exactly what changes he advocates, but stated that if the current legislation is maintained, the police cannot be blamed if the adolescent continues to commit crimes; "Young people have to be welcomed, [we] have to try to rehabilitate them, because otherwise everything will end up being the fault of the police," he added.
Vitor Abdala - Reporter for Agência Brasil
The Secretary of Security of Rio de Janeiro, José Mariano Beltrame, said today (7) that there needs to be a change in legislation regarding the treatment of adolescents in conflict with the law. The secretary did not explain exactly what changes he advocates, but said that, if the current legislation is maintained, the police cannot be blamed if the adolescent continues to commit crimes.
"Young people need to be welcomed, we need to try to rehabilitate them, because otherwise everything will end up being the police's fault. And adolescents are not a police problem. Adolescents are a problem of welcoming them, of providing them with the structure to return to society effectively able to live with it. Now, if they want to treat young people that way, that's fine too. Just don't blame the police when we present people who already have a criminal record, who have committed other offenses and are back on the streets committing crimes," he said.
Brazilian law stipulates that only individuals over 18 years of age at the time of committing a crime can be considered criminals and sentenced to prison. Under Brazilian law, adolescents do not commit crimes, but rather infractions.
According to the Statute of Children and Adolescents (ECA), depending on the severity of the infraction or recidivism, the adolescent may be taken to an inpatient unit to serve a socio-educational measure of up to three years. In practice, however, inpatient units function like prisons.
In an interview this Thursday at the Police Headquarters, Beltrame also said that the Rio government is trying to combat crimes committed by police officers. Commenting on a rape case in the Jacarezinho community, in the northern zone, where the suspects are police officers, Beltrame said that this is a problem of the officer's character and that "no police academy will make a sick person stop taking such a monstrous action. It's not a matter of training," he said.