PSY 3173 Lecture Notes - Lecture 13: Youth Criminal Justice Act, Juvenile Court, Young Offenders Act
28 Apr 2018
School
Department
Course
Professor
April 5, 2017
Assessment and Treatment of Young Offenders
Learning Objectives
Describe the history of young offender legislation
Identify psychiatric diagnoses and trajectories
Differentiate theories of antisocial behaviour
List risk and protective factors
Distinguish primary, secondary, and tertiary intervention for children, youth, and young offenders
Juvenile Delinquents Act (JDA), 1908
Separate court system for youth
-Before, youths were treated just like adults
Minimum age of 7 to be charged with criminal offence
Sentencing discretion and options increased: ex. ļ¬nes, foster care, institutionalization
Parents encouraged to be part of process
Criticisms:
-Services were not always available
-Youth court was very informal and unstructured, so some children were deļ¬ed their basic rights (ex. no lawyer
provided)
-Broad deļ¬nition of delinquency included acts that were not illegal for adults
Young Offenders Act (YOA)
Replaced JDA in 1984
-Youth held accountable for their actions, but not to the full extent as adults
-Public has the right to be protected
-Young offenders have legal rights and freedoms
-Minimum age of 12 to be changed with a criminal offence
Youth Criminal Justice Act (YCJA)
Replaced YOA in 2003
Objectives:
ī”1
April 5, 2017
-To prevent youth crime
-Provide meaningful consequences and encourage responsibility of behaviour
-Improve rehabilitation and reintegration of youth into the community
ā¢Use court and custody as a last resort
Key changes:
-Less serious and less violent offences should be kept out of the formal court process
-Extrajudicial measures are increased
-Greater focus on prevention/reintegration
-Transfers to adult court removed, but adult sentence can be imposed
-Interests and needs of victims recognized
-New custodial sentence became available under the YCJA: known as the Intensive Rehabilitative Custody and
Supervision order (IRCS)
ā¢Sentence was designed to deal with very serious cases where a mental health issue exists
Naming Youth
Names of youths cannot be reported to public, but only under the following special circumstances:
-Defendants between 14-17 years that are convicted of serious, violent offences
-Youth is considered dangerous
-Youth has not been apprehended yet
Youth Crime Rates
Total number of crimes by youth is decreasing
Probation is the most frequent sentence
Youth in custody during 2008-2009 down 8%
Down 42% from 2003-2004 when YCJA is introduced
Most common crime: property offences
Assessing Those Under Age 12
Levels of consent
Internalizing problems (ex. depression, anxiety)
Externalizing problems: behavioural problems (ex. delinquency, bullying)
ī”2
