A bill was proposed in the local Durango State Congress on April 21, which intended to abolish the Court of Justice for Juvenile Offenders of the State to incorporate its jurisdiction into the Superior Court of Justice, stripping the specialized office in juvenile justice of its autonomy.
After having examined the initiative, we formulated a recommendation not to approve the proposal, since it is a reform that violates the rights of adolescents in conflict with the law, the impartiality in the administration of justice and that contradicts the international and constitutional law that establishes that the authorities that make up the juvenile criminal justice system must be independent and specialized in the matter; In addition to representing a setback in the progress, we have achieved as a result of the collaboration agreement under which we have worked with the Juvenile Offenders Court for the last two years.
Finally, on May 25, a local deputy presented an initiative that, contrary to the previously mentioned, proposes to strengthen the Juvenile Court. Both initiatives are currently under consideration in the Congressional Committee on Constitutional Points, which means that, as of today, the juvenile court´s independence is still in danger.