NCJ Number
104069
Date Published
1986
Length
11 pages
Annotation
Hungarian criminal law and policy are considered with reference to the social causes and consequences of crime and alcoholism.
Abstract
On the basis of data of persons who have died of cirrhosis of the liver, it is estimated that there were approximately 422,640 alcohol addicts (those with alcohol-related health and adaptation problems) in Hungary in 1984. The at-risk population is estimated at about 500,000. In Hungary, causes of alcoholism include social norms and values favoring alcoholism; radical social, political, and economic changes in the past 40 years; and increased deviance originating from socialization disorders. Data on the alcohol-crime relationship for 1974-1983 show that alcohol-related offenses accounted for 22.2 to 27.5 percent of known offenses. Further, alcohol consumption was more likely to be implicated in the offenses of recidivists than in those of first-time offenders. Act IV of the new Criminal Code contains rules related to offenders whose crimes were committed in relation to alchohol: on the one hand, it establishes criminal responsibility; on the other, it prescribes medical treatment for those addicted to alcohol. Two forms of treatment are specified in the Criminal Code: compulsory detoxification or treatment in a work therapy program. Because a direct relationship between the offense and alcohol consumption often is difficult to prove, compulsory detoxification is rarely ordered by the courts. 6 notes.