Differential Criminal Procedure for Juveniles: From Legislative Intent to Challenges of Implementation

Hajipour, Yaser; Bagherinezhad, Zeinab

doi:10.22054/jclr.2026.93543.2886

Differential Criminal Procedure for Juveniles: From Legislative Intent to Challenges of Implementation

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

Yaser Hajipour ^¶

Zeinab Bagherinezhad

Assistant Professor, Department of Criminal Law and Criminology, Faculty of Law and Political Science, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.

https://doi.org/10.22054/jclr.2026.93543.2886

Abstract

Problem and Background
Differential criminal procedure for children is one of the important achievements of modern criminal policy and the movement for the protection of child rights. It is based on the recognition that children, because of their age, developmental characteristics, psychological conditions, and special needs, should not be subjected to the same criminal procedures and judicial mechanisms applied to adults. Accordingly, modern juvenile justice systems have gradually shifted from purely punitive approaches toward protective, educational, corrective, restorative, and rehabilitative responses. Differential criminal procedure seeks to establish special procedural guarantees for children at different stages of the criminal process, including police investigation, preliminary investigation, prosecution, trial, sentencing, and execution of judicial decisions.
The development of differential criminal procedure is closely connected with the expansion of child rights and modern criminal policy. The best interests of the child, respect for human dignity, individualized treatment, rehabilitation, and social reintegration are among the fundamental principles of juvenile justice. Iranian criminal legislation has also recognized this approach. The Criminal Procedure Code contains special provisions concerning children and adolescents and provides specific procedural mechanisms intended to distinguish juvenile justice from the ordinary criminal justice system governing adults.
However, the existence of special legal provisions does not necessarily guarantee their effective implementation. Examination of the legal framework and practical judicial approaches reveals a significant gap between legislative objectives and practice. Legal ambiguities and inconsistencies, insufficient specialized institutions, weaknesses in protective mechanisms, the absence of specialized police for children, difficulties concerning personality files, and certain judicial practices have created obstacles to the realization of differential criminal procedure. Consequently, in some cases, proceedings involving children may approach the ordinary model of adult criminal proceedings. The central issue of this research is therefore whether the existing regulations governing criminal procedure for children have been able to achieve the objectives of differential criminal procedure in practice and what the main obstacles to its realization are.
Objective of the Research
The main objective of this research is to analyze the foundations and manifestations of differential criminal procedure for children and to identify its major legislative and practical challenges. The study seeks to determine whether the special procedural mechanisms established by Iranian criminal legislation have created a genuinely differentiated system of juvenile justice or have remained largely formal.
The research also aims to assess the compatibility of differential criminal procedure with child rights, modern criminal policy, restorative justice, rehabilitation, and social reintegration. Particular attention is given to specialized police, specialized judicial authorities, personality files, protective mechanisms, informal justice, restorative justice, and the specialization of professionals involved in juvenile proceedings.
Research Method
This research employs a descriptive-analytical method and is based on library research. Relevant legal provisions, legal scholarship, academic literature, and judicial approaches concerning children, juvenile justice, child rights, and differential criminal procedure are examined and analyzed. The descriptive dimension identifies the existing legal rules, procedural guarantees, and specialized mechanisms, while the analytical dimension evaluates their effectiveness in achieving the objectives of differential criminal procedure. The research therefore focuses on the relationship between legislative intention and practical implementation and examines existing challenges from the perspective of child protection, modern criminal policy, restorative justice, and rehabilitation.
Research Findings
The findings demonstrate that the Iranian legislator has shown a clear intention to establish differential criminal procedure for children and adolescents. The adoption of special procedural rules and recognition of differentiated mechanisms represent an important development in Iranian juvenile justice. Nevertheless, these provisions have not yet resulted in a comprehensive and effective system of differential criminal procedure.
First, legal ambiguities and inconsistencies in some provisions create uncertainty regarding the scope and application of special procedural protections and may lead to different judicial interpretations. Therefore, differential criminal procedure is not always implemented uniformly. Second, the insufficient development of specialized institutions constitutes a major obstacle. In particular, the absence of a fully established specialized police system for children weakens differentiated treatment from the earliest stage of the criminal process. Police officers who lack specialized knowledge of child rights, child psychology, and juvenile justice may unintentionally expose children to procedures designed primarily for adults.
Third, the practical application of personality files faces significant challenges. Consideration of the child’s personality, psychological condition, family circumstances, social environment, and individual characteristics is essential for individualized juvenile justice. However, deficiencies in the preparation and evaluation of personality files and limited participation of psychologists, social workers, and other specialists may prevent judicial authorities from making fully individualized decisions.
Fourth, the findings indicate weaknesses in protective, restorative, and informal mechanisms. Although the legal framework recognizes certain educational and corrective responses, these mechanisms have not reached their full practical potential. Continued reliance on formal criminal proceedings may restrict the development of restorative justice and informal justice, despite their potential to promote rehabilitation, education, and social reintegration.
Finally, the effectiveness of differential criminal procedure depends substantially on the specialization of judicial and professional actors. Judges, prosecutors, police officers, lawyers, psychologists, and social workers require specialized training in child rights, child development, juvenile justice, restorative justice, and rehabilitation. Without such specialization, the practical effectiveness of special legal provisions remains limited.
Conclusion
The research concludes that Iranian criminal legislation has taken important steps toward establishing differential criminal procedure for children, but legislative recognition has not yet been fully transformed into effective institutional and practical differentiation. The main obstacles include legal ambiguities and inconsistencies, insufficient specialized institutions, the lack of specialized police for children, deficiencies in personality files, weak protective mechanisms, limited use of restorative and informal justice, and certain judicial practices.
Achieving genuine differential criminal procedure therefore requires comprehensive legislative, institutional, and practical reforms. Existing regulations should be revised to eliminate ambiguities and establish coherent procedural guarantees for children. Specialized police for children should be established, and specialized judicial and support institutions should be strengthened. Personality files should be improved through the effective participation of psychologists, social workers, and other qualified specialists. Moreover, restorative justice and informal justice should be expanded where appropriate to reduce unnecessary reliance on formal criminal proceedings and strengthen rehabilitation and social reintegration.
Ultimately, genuine differential criminal procedure requires a transition from merely formal legal differentiation to effective institutional and practical differentiation. Such a transformation can strengthen juvenile justice, protect child rights, and ensure that children are treated primarily through protective, educational, corrective, restorative, and rehabilitative measures rather than through punitive mechanisms designed for adults.

Keywords

Differential juvenile criminal procedure

Juvenile Criminal justice

Criminal policy

Personality file

Diversion

Juvenile resocialization

Subjects

Code of Criminal Procedure

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