PhD. Radu Catalin Pavel

The Romanian Law no. 291/2023 for the amendment and completion of art. 84 of the Romanian Law no. 272/2004 on the protection and promotion of children's rights and for the completion of art. 121 of the Romanian Law no. 286/2009 on the Romanian Criminal Code The parents of the child who commits criminal acts and does not respond criminally have the obligation to participate in the special psychological counseling programs organized by the general department of social assistance and child protection or by other institutions public or private specialty. The child will participate in the special psychological counseling programs, with the consent of the parents or another legal representative, unless the court provides otherwise. In the absence of the parents' agreement, the measure provided in par. ( 4 ) may be ordered by the court. The Romanian Decision no. 58/2023 of the High Court of Cassation and Justice regarding the notification formulated by the Bacău Court of Appeal - Criminal section for cases with minors and families in order to pronounce a preliminary decision for the release of a legal issue By the hearing report from the public meeting of March 28, 2023, the Bacău Court of Appeal- Criminal section and for cases with minors and families, based on art. 476 para. (1) related to art. 475 of the Romanian Code of Criminal Procedure, notified the High Court of Cassation and Justice in order to give a prior decision for the release of the following question of law: The general limitation period for the crime of common assault in the manner of domestic violence, provided by art. 193 para. (2) of the Romanian Criminal Code with the application of art. 199 para. (1) from the Romanian Criminal Code, both norms reported in art. 187 of the Romanian Criminal Code regarding the meaning of the notion of punishment provided by law, is the one shown by art. 154 para. (1) letter. c) from the Romanian Criminal Code or the one indicated by art. 154 para. (1) letter d) of the Romanian Criminal Code, respectively the legal nature of art. 199 para. (1) of the Romanian Criminal Code is: 1. of an independent offense (autonomy), 2. of an aggravated form of the offense to which (applies in the first 2 situations, the general limitation period being such 8 years) or 3. special cause of aggravation of the sentence in certain circumstances (in the latter situation, the general limitation period being such 5 years)?". The norm contained in art. 193 of the Romanian Criminal Code, which criminalizes common assault, represents the norm of incrimination of the standard variant of the act of impact or other violence containing the objective and subjective conditions that are required to be met cumulatively for the deed to constitute a crime. Unlike art. 193 of the Romanian Criminal Code, art. 199 para. (1) of the Romanian Criminal Code contains a provision for reference to the standard variants of the crimes provided by art. 188, art. 189 and art. 193-195 of the Romanian Criminal Code and a provision to increase by a quarter the special maximum of the sentence provided by law for these crimes, if the acts were committed on a family member. Thus, in the case of the analyzed legal provision, respectively art. 199 of the Romanian Criminal Code, the reference that the text makes available from art. 193 of the Romanian Criminal Code has the role of specifying the legal framework of this last regulation, when the deed is committed on family members. The regulation from art. 199 of the Romanian Criminal Code operates on the structure of the criminalization norm provided by art. 193 of the Romanian Criminal Code, which it extends as regards the quality of the subjects of the offense (family members), and as a consequence of this change, the legislator adapted the upper limits of punishment to the degree of abstract social danger, by increasing the maximum by a quarter. By providing a special maximum of the higher punishment for the crimes provided by art. 188, art. 189 and art. 193-195 of the Romanian Criminal Code (increased by a quarter), if the acts were committed against a family member, the legislator also sought to guarantee, respect and protect family relations and discourage domestic violence, but this increase is not likely to create a new type-crime. Thus, the crime of common assault provided by art. 193 of the Romanian Criminal Code constitutes the standard crime, representing the basic form, while the provisions of art. 199 of the Romanian Criminal Code prints to the standard crime provided by art. 193 an aggravated form, if the deed is committed on a family member. Therefore, The High Court of Cassation and Justice admits the notification formulated by the Bacău Court of Appeal - Criminal section for cases with minors and families requesting the issuance of a preliminary decision for the release this question of law.