Abstract
This article analyzes overcrowding in the juvenile detention system as a sociological object, based on a discussion of national and interstate legislation and guidelines that address overcrowding in detention centers for adolescents who are accused of committing infractions. To this end, a comparative analysis is made between two countries with differentiated actions in dealing with the issue, Brazil and France. Based on the description of the system of sanctions for adolescents accused of infractions in the two countries, we propose a debate that complexifies the concept of overcrowding itself, and then present how it is discussed in the Brazilian and French contexts, which highlights singularities and disputes over ways of dealing with overcrowding in juvenile detention facilities. This analysis allows us to define overcrowding as a political outcome of the interaction between the justice system, governments, and activists, which opens space for questioning deprivation of liberty as an inevitable and self-evident response to dealing with juvenile offenses.
Keywords
overcrowding; punishment; adolescents; incarceration; juvenile detention center