The Child, the Crime, and the Law

The law does not assume that guilt and youth are incompatible — only that the burden of proof must be higher when the accused is still a child.

Doli Incapax

"Incapable of wrong."

This Latin legal doctrine presumes that children below a certain age cannot form criminal intent — treating them as fundamentally unable to understand that their actions are seriously wrong, not just naughty. To overcome the presumption, the prosecution must prove beyond reasonable doubt that the child knew their act was seriously wrong — not merely mischievous.

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