NCJ Number
90786
Journal
Revue internationale de criminologie et de police technique Volume: 35 Issue: 1 Dated: (January - March 1982) Pages: 47-56
Date Published
1982
Length
10 pages
Annotation
Greece is interested in being in step with the eventual emergence of a coordinated European system of criminal justice. To this end, legislative reforms are gradually being effected that conform to the general principles espoused by the Council of Europe.
Abstract
The current criminal codes date from 1951 and embody basic humanitarian, treatment and rehabilitation oriented goals. Nevertheless, gradual legislative revisions have been made in the 1970's to reflect contemporary directions in criminological theory and the realities of social change. The reforms have to do with alternatives to institutionalization, decriminalization of victimless offenses, and criminalization of white-collar abuses and other new forms of criminality. Legislative progress has been slow, however, due to the conservative nature of the dominant public opinion. A significant step was the illicit drug law passed in 1970. Subsequently, air piracy, gun and explosives possession, and terrorist activity have been legislated against. Criminal procedures reforms have instituted appeals courts, reorganized the court system, extended jury eligibility, and specified alternative juvenile justice measures. Still other laws have restricted criminal records access and introduced probation sentences for less serious offenses.