Review of Scientifi c Literature on the Age of Criminal Majority in Braz il

Abstract

This paper is a review of literature that aimed to describe the main results of scientifi c studies on the age of criminal majority in Brazil published in three electronic databases: SciELO, LILACS and the Regional Portal of the VHL. From the 57 articles initially found, after screening for the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 11 were eff ectively analyzed. These were submitted to thematic content analysis. It was identifi ed that the premises of the irregular situation doctrine, although overcome in terms of legislation, remain rooted in institutionalized practices, discourses and representations about adolescents in confl ict with the law. However, in the evolution of laws in the world, the tendency seems to be to maintain the age of criminal majority, rather than reduce it. It was concluded that the evidence found, although limited to the criteria of this study, refuted the hypothesis that simply reducing the legal age would be eff ective in confronting juvenile criminality in the country.