Comparison of South American Criminal Justice Systems: A Critical Assessment

• In Event: Criminal Law Making Policy WG Panel 1. Criminal Policy Trends from a macro perspective

Abstract

The comparison of criminal justice systems has proven to be relevant for understanding their characteristics, dynamics, and practices. This knowledge provides an overview of the various aspects of criminal law, the effects of its application, and the institutions that exist in each penal system and where they come from. Information on the experience of other penal systems in preventing crime leads to reflection on one's own situation and can help to formulate hypotheses or proposals for improvement in other contexts. One of the strategies for contrasting penal systems is based on comparative criteria, such as those proposed by the social inclusion-exclusion dimension (Díez Ripollés, 2011), which has been implemented from the socially exclusive approach through the application of the RIMES instrument in jurisdictions in the global North (García-España & Cerezo, 2023). This paper aims to critically evaluate the results and limitations of the exploratory application of RIMES in four South American penal systems: Chilean, Peruvian, Colombian and Argentinian.

Author

• Bertha Prado-Manrique, Universidad de Málaga