Law to prevent juvenile crimes

刑责年龄拟降至12周岁

Chinese lawmakers are mulling over lowering the minimum age at which a minor can be convicted to 12, in individual cases under specific circumstances.

我国立法机构考虑在特定情形下将最低刑事责任年龄下调至12岁。

The proposal was made in a draft amendment to the Criminal Law, which was submitted Tuesday to the ongoing session of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress. If a juvenile who has reached the age of 12, but is under 14, commits intentional homicide or inflicts an injury that leads to death under flagrant circumstances, he or she shall bear criminal responsibility upon attestation and approval of the Supreme People's Procuratorate, according to the draft.

10月13日提请十三届全国人大常委会审议的刑法修正案（十一）草案二审稿拟规定，已满12周岁不满14周岁的人，犯故意杀人、故意伤害罪，致人死亡，情节恶劣的，经最高人民检察院核准，应当负刑事责任。

Currently, minors under the age of 14 do not bear any criminal responsibility in China.

目前，我国14岁以下的未成年人不承担任何刑事责任。

However, some high-profile cases involving violent crimes committed by underage youths in recent years have sparked a heated debate on the minimum age of criminal liability.

但是近年来一些备受关注的未成年人暴力犯罪案件，引发人们对有关最低刑事责任年龄问题的激烈讨论。