¿Una justicia restaurativa limitada? Reflexiones sobre el alcance de la mediación penal en el sistema penal acusatorio colombiano

Abstract

Colombia’s adversarial criminal justice system has incorporated restorative justice mechanisms aimed at promoting alternative forms of resolving criminal disputes, including criminal mediation. However, current legislation limits its application by requiring that the punishable offense carry a minimum sentence of less than five years in prison and that the protected legal interest be of an individual nature. These conditions significantly narrow its scope of application and raise questions about its effectiveness in achieving restorative objectives within the criminal justice system. From a legal-dogmatic perspective, this study analyzes the scope of criminal mediation in the Colombian adversarial criminal justice system by examining the provisions of Law 906 of 2004, as well as relevant constitutional doctrine and case law. Likewise, certain offenses provided for in the Colombian Penal Code are examined in order to identify which ones meet the legal requirements for the application of this mechanism and which ones are excluded due to the established punitive limit. The analysis shows that, despite its potential to promote the repair of harm and the efficient management of criminal disputes, criminal mediation has a limited scope. In this context, it is worth considering a reasonable expansion of its application to certain offenses that, while exceeding the current threshold for criminal punishment, primarily affect individual legal interests and could be addressed through restorative mechanisms under strict eligibility criteria.