LAWS 3307 Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Youth Criminal Justice Act, Royal Assent, The Young Offenders
Document Summary
We need to treat young people differently we can"t hold them accountable the same way as an adult. Not only in criminal law property rights as well rules of inheritance as well. They don"t have the same privileges as adults, drinking, driving, voting. In canada we recognize 3 phases of criminal responsibility: reliability childhood under the age of 12. Sentences are lower: adulthood phase full accountability 18 and over. Fundamental law only punish people for blame worthy behaviour. The younger you are the least blameworthy you are. There is a big physical difference the brains of adolescences are very different. Young tend to be more impulsive, less thought of consequences, thrill of risk, don"t have the same empathy. The frontal lobe the command centre: decision making, risk assessment, last part of the brain to mature not till the early twenties, not as capable of weighing their consequences of their actions.
