Some years ago, Anne McLellan, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, introduced the new Youth Criminal Justice Act, which replaces the Young Offenders Act (YOA) as part of the Government of Canada’s Youth Justice Strategy. The government decided to overhaul the youth justice system in response to what Canadians were telling them, “Most had lost confidence in the Young Offenders Act. The system didn’t seem to be working very well, with more young people in jail for relatively minor offences.” Throwing children or teenagers into prisons designed for adults makes no sense, says the federal justice minister. The proposed legislation drew criticism from the opposition Reform party for being too easy on youth who get in trouble with the law. The Reform party wants the age of offenders covered by the law to be lowered to 10 from 12 and says youth older than 15 should be automatically transferred to adult court.
“Putting kids in jail, though sometimes necessary, is not an effective response to youth crime,” McLellan says. “Once you talk to Canadians, they’re the ones who tell us putting more young people in jail for longer will not make this a safer society,” she says. The legislation also proposed lowering the age of those who could get adult sentences to 14 from 16 and supervising all young offenders who have done time in jail. She feels, “We need to acknowledge that when serious things happen, there need to be meaningful consequences. “The Reform party says youth
get caught in a cycle of crime because they know there are no serious consequences.
Perhaps they’re right. Faze Teen spoke with ‘John Doe’ who at the age of 15 was charged with
Grand Theft Auto and Possession Over $1000. When asked why he did it, he responded, “I did it
for something to do – it was all for fun.” John went on to say, “I had read about the law. I knew the
worst thing that could happen was serving some community hours because I was a young offender
and it would be my first offence.” However, when we asked John if he would have still committed
the crime if he knew the consequences would be severe, he answered, “I thought I would get away
with it so it didn’t matter what the penalties were.” According to the Canadian Criminal Justice
Association, lawyers who are familiar with young offenders are unanimous in stating that, “These
youths, at the time of their offence, gave no consideration to the consequences of their actions and
that they would in no way be deterred from committing offences if they knew that their name would
be published in the paper; no more than they would be if they knew that they would be punished
more severely.”
Faze spoke with another young offender, Jane Doe. When asked what was going through her head
as she attacked a young girl with a knife, she answered, “She had provoked me for months, so at the
time, I was mad – and she was just making me madder!” At 14, Jane was charged with Aggravated
Assault with a Weapon. She recalls, “There were four teachers, two principals and several students
watching, so I knew I’d be caught but didn’t care at that time.” Would severe consequences have
deterred her from the assault? She says, “I probably still would have done it since I wasn’t thinking
about the punishment anyway.” Justice Minister, McLellan, says that the legislation is part of a wider
strategy dealing with youth crime that doesn’t always involve judges and jails, but community-based
efforts to prevent kids from becoming criminals.
Source:
http://faze.ca/crime-punishment
