Kriminalisierung der Armen für die Ärmsten?

The criminal offence of failure to pay maintenance also appears to be an article in the fight against child poverty. The associated criminalisation of defaulting parents who are obliged to pay maintenance is critically examined in this study. Findings on the current application of criminal law gained from an evaluation of files at the public prosecutor's office in Freiburg i. Br. are incorporated into a proportionality test based on legal interests, which combines both the case law of the Federal Constitutional Court and considerations of the theory of legal interests critical of criminal law. The existing need for reform of Section 170 (1) StGB in the current welfare state becomes clear.