Lithuania proposes stricter parole rules for child sex offenders

Lithuania’s justice minister has proposed stricter parole rules for people convicted of sexual offences against minors, after the Constitutional Court ruled that a blanket ban on their early release was unconstitutional, LRT reported.

The Seimas, Lithuania’s parliament, approved the amendments to the Code of Execution of Sentences at their initial presentation. Fifty-eight members voted in favour, one against and one abstained. The bill will now be considered by the Seimas Committee on Legal Affairs and Law Enforcement.

Under the proposal, people serving sentences for offences against a minor’s sexual self-determination and inviolability could be considered for parole only after serving at least two-thirds of their sentence. Justice Minister Rita Tamašunienė said this would be the earliest point at which each case could be considered individually.

The proposal would exclude these prisoners from parole routes based on agreeing to intensive supervision, as well as from automatic parole after serving three-quarters of a sentence for less serious and moderately serious offences.

Tamašunienė said decisions should take into account the time served, the risk of reoffending, the actual danger to minors and whether probation measures would be sufficient. She said 175 people are currently serving sentences under the relevant provisions, and about half are approaching the point at which they could be considered for parole.

On June 11, the Constitutional Court ruled that the blanket ban on parole for people imprisoned for sexual offences against minors breached the constitutional principle of the rule of law because it prevented individual circumstances from being assessed.

The case followed a constitutional complaint by Remigijus Jakštys, who was convicted of molesting teenagers. He was released shortly after the ruling but returned to prison in August after a new sentence took effect.