Constitutional Court rules blanket ban on parole for child sexual offenders unconstitutional

The Constitutional Court of Lithuania has ruled that a provision in the Criminal Execution Code banning parole for prisoners convicted of sexual crimes against minors violates the principle of a law-based state, as reported by BNS.

The case was examined in written proceedings following a constitutional complaint by Remigijus Jakštys, a youth mentor convicted of corrupting minors. Jakštys had requested clarification on whether the ban on parole for such offences contradicts the constitutional principles of equality, justice, and the rule of law.

Jakštys turned to the Constitutional Court after lower courts rejected his request for parole. In December 2025, the Kaunas District Court sentenced him to one year and eight months in prison for the corruption of three individuals under the age of 16 between 2018 and 2020. Combined with a previous sentence from 2023, his total prison term was set at four years and three months. The case is currently under appeal at the Kaunas Regional Court.

Jakštys is currently serving a sentence for the corruption of three other minors. He has already served a pre-trial detention sentence for sexual crimes against four other minors.