ÖVP plans prison terms for parents criminal children in Upper Austria!

ÖVP plans prison terms for parents criminal children in Upper Austria!

The ÖVP Upper Austria has launched a controversial initiative to combat youth crime, which could now also provide for hard punishments for parents. In its new advance, the party demands that parents whose children accept criminal ways of lifestyle are proven with prison terms if they fail in their educational task. These measures are part of the "security agenda", which the state government would like to start next Wednesday and should apply until 2027, as vienna.at reports.

Florian Hiegelsberger, state manager of the ÖVP, argues that punishment of "carefree and uncooperative parents" is necessary to counteract the increasing youth crime. In Upper Austria, over 360 young people were convicted in 2024, and the number of convictions of young perpetrators had increased by almost 17% last year. In addition, the proportion of criminal records was 37.6%, which underlines the urgency of the situation, according to the reports of Kurier.

Background and current trends of youth crime

The discussion about parental liability is no coincidence. The Austrian police have determined an increase in youthful crimes in recent years, with many perpetrators under the age of 14 and therefore without punishment. According to the Security Newspaper, a reform of the Criminal Code is required to take more responsibility for parents.

The increase in violence and crimes committed in cities such as Vienna-Floridsdorf has sparked a broad discussion about how to deal with young perpetrators. Common crimes are theft, property damage and assault. The ÖVP's proposal also stipulates that parents can be held responsible for the non -appearance of their children during authorities and for their repeated misconduct.

Planned measures and comparisons with Germany

In addition to prison terms for parents, the ÖVP plans to take over the “warning shot arrest” from Germany. Young perpetrators between four days and four weeks could be taken into account without receiving a criminal record, which is the goal of preventing them from further crimes. This method could also be combined with measures such as house arrest and specialized social pedagogical shared apartments to support the upbringing of young people.

In Germany, some federal states are already committed to holding parents responsible for their children's misconduct. The current Austrian model has so far provides fines or imprisonment for up to six months if parents roughly neglect their obligation to educate. With the new proposals, this responsibility could be increased significantly in order to reduce youth crime through stronger parental control.

The upcoming political decisions and their implementation will show whether these measures can achieve the hoped -for effect and whether responsibility regarding child rearing is also adapted accordingly.