Criminologist: "Juvenile detention centers were removed because they did not work"

At present, there are a number of proposals aimed at breaking the criminal gangs' studied use of children and young people to commit serious crimes.  

Among other things, the government wants to increase the police's rights to physically visit children under the age of 15 and see a abolished penalty rebate for those between the ages of 18-21 who relapse into serious crime.  

The moderates also propose that the prison service should take over when young people are serving sentences for the most serious crimes.

"Unit they can not escape from"

- There are plenty of examples of people who have committed serious robberies, beatings and even murders.

I think they should be in some form of juvenile prison, a special unit for minors that they can not escape from and where they also do not meet 14-15-year-olds, says Johan Forssell (M), legal policy spokesman for the Moderates.

The proposal is supported by a majority of the parliamentary parties.

Today, 15-17-year-olds, and in some cases even slightly older people, are sentenced to so-called closed youth care if they are convicted of the most serious crimes such as murder, rape and serious drug crimes.

Closed youth care is served in so-called SIS homes run by the Swedish National Board of Education.

In SIS homes, there are also young people with a great need for care due to, for example, self-harming behavior.  

- I think it is very strange that you should mix these categories as you do today, says Johan Forssell.

Following high-profile escapes and other security problems, such as staff being exposed to threats and violence, work is currently underway to make SIS homes safer and to separate the young people convicted of crimes from the others.

The government has also appointed an inquiry to be completed by the end of 2022. 

"Unnecessary proposal"

But criminologist Christoffer Carlsson, who studied SIS care, is skeptical:

- It is an unnecessary proposal.

We removed juvenile prisons because they did not work.

SIS does not work very well either but they have been working on this for 20 years.

There are a number of proposals and measures now that make it work better, he says.

- SIS has school and specialist competence to treat these people.

A tougher grip on juvenile delinquents is discussed in