Vienna juvenile detention pilot faces constitutional legality concerns

Legal experts are raising concerns regarding the constitutionality of the ‘Auszeit-WG’ in Vienna, a pilot program designed to detain intensive juvenile offenders under the age of 14 for up to three months.

Constitutional jurist Heinz Mayer has characterized the program as a ‘breach of the constitution,’ citing a legal opinion from the Federal Chancellery’s Constitutional Service. The expert argues that the Home Stay Act (HeimAufG), which provides the current legal basis for these stays, is intended for health-related interventions for the mentally ill rather than for preventing criminal activity.

According to the legal assessment, there is a fundamental separation between criminal law and the health sector. While the Austrian government coalition intends to create specialized social-pedagogical residential groups to manage young offenders without lowering the age of criminal responsibility, critics argue that using child and youth welfare laws to restrict liberty for crime prevention lacks a proper legal foundation. Mayer noted that such unconstitutional deprivation of liberty could potentially lead to compensation claims by those affected.