Juvenile Homelessness Essay

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Recommended: Cause and effects of youth homelessness

Juvenile Justice, Homelessness and Remand
YOUTH ACTION ADVOCACY AND POLICY ASSOCIATION
By Andrew Kyu Sun Choi

“Youth Action Advocacy and Policy (YAPA) is the peak organisation representing young people and youth services in NSW. YAPA works towards a society where all young people are supported, engaged and valued (Youth Action Advocacy and Policy Association, n.d.)”

Executive Summary

Young people have increasingly been subjected to remand when navigating through the juvenile justice system (Vignaendra et al., 2009). The causal relationship between youth homelessness and remand remains to be at the heart of this predicament (Richards, 2011). The enactment of the Young Offenders Act 1997 (NSW) has attempted to reorient the public discourse around restorative justice to balance the needs of both juvenile offenders and the public at large. The corollary to the effect of this legal paradigm has been a shift towards detention as a last resort for juveniles. Despite this, the high incidence of homelessness amongst juveniles, weak legal protections for housing security and a corresponding lack of state-sponsored accommodation have exacerbated pre-trial custodial sentencing. This report will contest to the notion that a recalibration of the discourse around young offenders within a right-based framework delivers greater recourse within the criminal justice system towards both protecting and serving the best interests of homeless juveniles.

The Issue and its Context

The Young Offenders Act 1997 (NSW) s 7 has enshrined Articles 2, 3, 6 and 12 of the UN Convention on the Rights of a Child (1984) 1557 UNTS 3, cementing principles of non-discrimination, acting in the ‘best interests...

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Weatherburn, D., McGrath, A. and Bartels, L. (2012), ‘Three Dogmas of Juvenile Justice’, University of New South Wales Law Journal, Vol. 35, pp. 779-809.

Wong, K., Bailey, B. and Kenny, D.T. (2010), Bail Me Out: NSW Young People and Bail, Youth Justice Coalition, Marrickville, viewed 23 March 2014, http://www.yjconline.net/BailMeOut.pdf.

Wood, J. (2008), Report of the Special Commission of Inquiry into Child Protection Services in NSW, NSW Department of Premier and Cabinet, Sydney, viewed 24 March 2014, http://www.dpc.nsw.gov.au/publications/news/stories/?a=33794.

Youth Action Advocacy and Policy Association n.d., About Youth Action, YAPA, Sydney, viewed 21 March 2014, http://youthaction.org.au/about/.

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