Discretionary reduction reasons in terms of Turkish criminal law

The institution of "Discretionary Reduction Reasons" in Article 62 of Law No. 5237 of the Turkish Criminal Code is one of the most important tools for individualizing the punishment. The reason for this is that in modern criminal law, it is not possible to take into account the personal characteristics of the perpetrator while regulating the type of punishment to be imposed on the unlawful acts that constitute a crime in line with the principle of legality in crime and punishment. Imposing the same punishment on all offenders committing the same crime may not be compatible with the objectives of punishment, such as rehabilitation and reintegrating of the perpetrator into society, and could lead some offenders to perceive it as injustice and imbalance, thereby losing their trust in the legal system. In the Turkish Penal Code, the perpetrator's past, social relations, behaviors showing remorse after the act and during the trial process, and the possible effects of the punishment on the future of the perpetrator are listed as reasons for discretionary reduction. The Act No. 7406 on the Amendment of the Turkish Penal Code and Certain Laws, which was accepted on May 12, 2022, and entered into force on May 27, 2022, has made significant changes in the institution of discretionary reduction reasons with Article 1. The most notable change is the transformation of discretionary reduction reasons from exemplary to a limited list. A another amendment is that in order to eliminate the intense criticism of the discretionary discount, known in the society as "tie discount/ suit discount"; deceptive attitudes and behaviors aimed at influencing the court in the hearing cannot be accepted as a reason for discretionary discount. In our study; we have examined like what the institution of discretionary reduction reasons is, how it originated, why it exists and must continue to exist, why Law No. 7406 was enacted, how this new regulation has affected discretionary reduction reasons and how it is likely to influence them in the future.