12.1 – Criminal law & young people

History of Youth Crime Legislation < 1908 Children 7 years old and over – tried as adults 1908 Juvenile Delinquents Act 1984 Young Offenders Act 2002 Youth Criminal Justice Act

Age & Degree of Criminal Responsibility CLASSIFICATION RESPONSIBILITY 0-11 years Child None 12-17 years Youth Partial 18 years + Adult Full

Legal Rights of Young People Youths have rights as set out in Charter of Rights & Freedoms Have additional rights set out in YCJA Eg. - if arrested, right to a lawyer and parent/adult during questioning Searches Contradictions – some judges ruled that parent’s permission to search is sufficient – others say that youth must also provide permission Search warrants still best option

Legal Rights of Young People cont… School searches Supreme Court has determined that warrants are not essential for searches in school by school official with reasonable grounds Publication of identities Young offender’s names may not be published However, young offenders given adult sentences may have names published after sentence is pronounced

Youth Criminal Justice System See Figure 12.12 (p. 367 of text) Community-based measures extrajudicial sanctions = participating in community- based programs instead of going to court Youth justice court = special court for young people between ages of 12 and 18 who have been charged with a criminal offence

Sentencing Options Key sentencing principle: Hold young person accountable for their actions by imposing a sentence that is fair, meaningful, and helpful in the process of rehabilitation Sentence must be proportionate to the crime and cannot exceed sentence an adult would receive for same crime

Sentencing Options cont… Youth sentences: = punishment imposed on a young person that takes into consideration the principles involved in sentencing people under the age of 18 Custody = sentence entailing confinement within a controlled facility; usually imposed on a young person who commits a serious crime Eg. Group home, wilderness camp, correctional facility Custody and supervision order = court order that sets out terms and conditions, requiring the youth to spend 2/3 of the sentence in custody and the last 1/3 in the community under supervision

Sentencing Options cont… Open custody = sentence directing youth to stay in a group home or participate in a wilderness camp for a certain period Secure custody = sentence that incarcerates a young criminal in a special youth facility Youth worker = person appointed to monitor a youth’s progress in the community Adult sentences = youth charged with serious crimes may be sentenced as adults Records Youth crime records destroyed after period of time

Final Thought