Section 74 — Child 12 to 15: measures without punishment
English translation
A child over twelve but not over fifteen years of age who commits an act that the law provides to be an offence shall not be punished, but the court shall have the power to take the following actions:
(1) to admonish the child and then release the child, and if the court thinks fit, it may summon the father, mother, guardian, or the person with whom the child resides to be admonished as well;
(2) if the court thinks fit, to entrust the child to the father, mother, guardian, or the person with whom the child resides, imposing on such person the condition of watching over the child so as not to cause harm throughout the period fixed by the court, which must not exceed three years, and fixing a sum of money as it thinks fit, which such person must pay to the court not exceeding ten thousand baht on each occasion the child causes harm;
(3) if the court is of the opinion that the father, mother, or guardian is unable to take care of the child, to entrust the child to another person or organisation that the court thinks fit for care, training and instruction for the period fixed by the court;
(4) to send the child to a school, or a training and instruction institution, or a place established to train and instruct children, throughout the period fixed by the court, but not beyond the time the child reaches eighteen years of age.
This English translation is provided for reference only and has not yet been firm-verified — always rely on the Thai original.
Firm annotation
Placed in Book 1 within the Title on Criminal Liability, this section continues the graduated age scheme that begins at section 73. A child in the over-12-to-15 band still bears no punishment, but unlike section 73 the court is given four rehabilitative and protective options in place of a penalty, ranging from admonition to committal to a training institution until age eighteen. The supervision bond in subsection (2) is enforced through section 77, which lets the court require payment or vary the conditions if the responsible person fails to control the child. The boundary with section 75 is sharp: at exactly fifteen and over, the child moves out of this no-punishment band and instead faces a discretionary conviction with the punishment reduced by half.
Why this matters in practice
For a child in this age band, the practical outcome is never a fine or imprisonment but a court-supervised measure, so the real questions are which measure applies and what conditions bind the parents. Parents entrusted with the child under subsection (2) accept a financial exposure: they may be ordered to pay the sum fixed by the court each time the child causes fresh harm. Confirming the child was over twelve but under fifteen at the time of the act is the threshold issue, since it separates the no-punishment band from the reduced-punishment rule in section 75.
Supreme Court decisions interpreting this section
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Supreme Court Judgment No. 6065/2559 (2016)
A child over twelve but not over fifteen is not punished; the court may admonish the child and entrust the child to a guardian under a supervision bond.
The defendant, aged fourteen at the time, was found to have committed an offence but was not punished under section 74. The court admonished the defendant, returned the defendant to the guardian, and imposed a bond requiring payment if the defendant caused fresh harm within one year.
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Supreme Court Judgment No. 10272/2559 (2016)
A child not over fifteen bears no punishment, but the court may order the child sent to a juvenile training and instruction centre, not beyond the age of eighteen.
The defendant, aged fourteen at the time, committed offences of taking a child away and for an indecent purpose. Not punishable under section 74, the defendant was ordered to a juvenile training centre for a minimum of one and a maximum of two years, not to exceed the age of eighteen.
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Supreme Court Judgment No. 4187/2558 (2015)
Section 74 and section 75 mark a firm age boundary: a defendant aged fourteen is not punished under section 74, while a co-defendant aged fifteen is convicted with the punishment reduced by half under section 75.
Two co-defendants committed offences together. The first, aged fourteen, was not punished under section 74; the second, aged fifteen, was convicted but had the scale of punishment reduced by one half on each count under section 75, illustrating the dividing line between the two provisions.
Curated decisions with case numbers verified against the Supreme Court database. English renderings are the firm's editorial translation for study.
Frequently asked questions
Is a 13 or 14 year old punished for a crime in Thailand?
No. Under section 74 a child over twelve but not over fifteen is not punished, but the court may impose measures such as admonition, a supervision bond on the parents, or committal to a training institution.
Can parents be made to pay money if their child offends again?
Yes. If the court entrusts the child to the parents under subsection (2), it may fix a sum of up to ten thousand baht that the parents must pay each time the child causes harm.