Philippine National Police chief Gen. Nicolas Torre III. (PNA file photo by Robert Alfiler)
Could kids as young as nine be held criminally liable? The Philippine National Police says maybe—but only if science gives the green light.
PNP Chief Gen. Nicolas Torre III announced Friday that the police are ready to back proposals lowering the age of criminal responsibility, but they want solid research to guide the law.
“This is a hot topic,” Torre said. “We’ll submit a formal position paper to Congress so our voice is heard if juvenile justice laws are revised.”
Torre stressed the importance of scientific studies. “We support lowering the age of discernment, but it must be based on evidence. We need to ask: Are today’s kids, with all their access to information, more aware and responsible than before?”
Currently, the law sets the age of criminal responsibility at 15 under the Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act. UNICEF Philippines points out that the brain doesn’t fully mature until around 16, affecting reasoning and impulse control. But proponents of the law change argue that children as young as nine can already understand right from wrong.
The House of Representatives is reviewing proposals to lower the age to 12—and even down to nine in some versions. The debate is heating up, and the PNP is now officially weighing in.