Sie schicken sie zu mir — ob sie wollen oder nicht | Chefpsychologe Leonardo Vertone

Leonardo Vertone, Lic. phil., is the chief psychologist and co-director of the Center for Child and Adolescent Forensic Psychiatry (ZKJF) in Switzerland. For over 20 years, he has worked with young people who have come into contact with the criminal justice system—preparing psychological reports for courts, assessing the risk of recidivism, and providing therapeutic support to adolescents in state-mandated settings. In this conversation, we explore what drives people—and especially young people—to fundamentally cross boundaries. We discuss the Freudenberg case, which shocked both Germany and Switzerland, and what a forensic expert can discern in it that remains hidden from others. A central focus is the question of criminal responsibility: At what age does a person know what they are doing? Why is the age of criminal responsibility in Switzerland 10—and what does that mean in practice? Vertone explains how biography, psychological stress, and social environment interact and what role social media and radicalization play in this. We're talking about the Netflix series "Adolescence," what it portrays well—and what it leaves out. We'll discuss the impossible task of making recommendations when you don't know all the answers. And we'll talk about the cases that keep haunting us. This conversation provides psychological and scientific context and does not replace legal, medical, or therapeutic advice. Enjoy the episode! Guest suggestions for future Swisslectures podcasts are welcome in the comments or at [email protected]