Can a child be a contract killer?

Question

Various jurisdictions including Canada, England and Wales and Washington have laws which state, apparently categorically, that children under a certain age cannot commit crimes or be convicted of crimes. E.g. Canada's criminal code section 13 says:

No person shall be convicted of an offence in respect of an act or omission on his part while that person was under the age of twelve years.

Does this mean that a minor under the specified age could "openly have, say, a contract killer career, retire at [the specified age] and walk free"?

What legal mechanism would stop a child that is younger than their jurisdiction's minimum age for criminal liability from doing this?

There may very well be legal consequences for the minor's parents or legal guardians, but this question is specifically about the legal consequences for the minor.

_{(This question is a follow-up to a discussion on this other Q&A, where @Greendrake proposed this hypothetical example.)}

Answer 1

In germany, a child below the age of 14 cannot be guilty of a crime. However, a family court may order measures regarding the welfare of the child. In a case like the one you describe, or even somewhat less extreme ones, this might be taking the child out of the family and into a care home where the child would be locked up for his or her own good.

Answer 2

canada

Child protective services would very likely intervene to place the child in circumstances where they can be better supervised for their own well-being and safety.

See generally and for example: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/safety/public-safety/protecting-children and the Child, Family and Community Service Act.

Section 15(2) specifically states, "If the child has killed, assaulted or endangered another person, the police officer must report the circumstances to a director, and, in any other case, may report the circumstances to a director."

After a report to the director, the director must investigate the child's need for protection and can make orders for a plan of care, issue supervision orders, remove the child, and ultimately place them in the custody of another person or in the care of the director.

Answer 3

washington

Parents have an obligation to make their children behave, to a certain extent. If the parents allow their child to engage in some criminal enterprise, the courts have broad jurisdiction to intervene, and can terminate the parent-child relationship and appoint someone else to supervise the child. This includes being assigned to a shelter with locked doors. This is not the same as conviction and punishment for committing an illegal act, it is about protecting the interests of the child. (I understand that this may seem like a distinction without a difference.) A propos your scenario, let us dial the crime back a bit: the child was a lookout for a burglary ring, but stopped (having been undetected) and thereafter lived a virtuous life. Then the child can "get away with it". The question that the courts would address in any termination of relation and assignment to custodial care case is whether the situation warranting the action still exists. In the case of a 12 year old contract killer with a 6 year career, it is unimaginable that the courts would think that the situation no longer exists.

Answer 4

In the UK, the murder of James Bulger was carried out by two 10-year-old boys. They were tried, convicted, and spent the rest of their youth in young offenders institutions. As adults, various restrictions apply to where they can go and what they can do for the rest of their lives.

The key element was the question of whether the boys knew that what they were doing was wrong. If your hypothetical killer can tell right from wrong, they will be convicted the same way.

Answer 5

england-and-wales

In England, the absolute age of criminal responsibility is 10, so in the strictest sense your answer is that a child aged 11 or 12 who commits a murder (or series of murders) would be held responsible and charged with murder. That case would escalate from the Youth Court to the Crown Court and they would be sentenced.

Children between 10 and 17 can be arrested and taken to court if they commit a crime.

They are treated differently from adults and are:

dealt with by youth courts
given different sentences
sent to special secure centres for young people, not adult prisons

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The sentences available to the courts would be up to and including an 'extended duration sentence', one appropriate to the severity of the crime (e.g. 10-20+ years), but usually less.

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If you're asking what would happen if a child was below the age of criminal responsibility (e.g. 10), then the answer is different. These children can't be charged with a crime, but they can be taken into care.

Children under 10 cannot be charged with committing a criminal offence. However, they can be given a:

Local Child Curfew
Child Safety Order
Children under 10 who break the law regularly can sometimes be taken into care, or their parents could be held responsible.

_{^{Gov.uk - What happens if a child under 10 breaks the law?}}

Whoever directed their activities could obviously be charged with a range of offences including murder (e.g. in the sense that the child was used as a weapon) and child endangerment.