Youth Criminal Justice Act

1291 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Consequences of youth crimes

Youth and criminal Justice Act

In today's world many youth are being influenced in a bad was such as drugs, violence, theft, and etc. This than begins to lead to crime rates increasing in our country. Canada's Youth and Criminal Justice Act govern Canada's legal system for kids whom are under legal age. This act prevents our future young adults from committing offences and being restricted from doing it again. Canada's Youth and Criminal Justice is to lenient and does not control today's youths, it still does not meet the needs of how it should be in many ways. Many begin to debate whether we should improve our Youth Criminal Justice Act to match our adults punishment. Firstly our YCJA has not met the philosophy standards , youth crime rates have been increasing and if punishment are not sever they will continue to increase, and lastly our Youth and Criminal Justice Act are not strict enough which leads back to our Canada system being to lenient on our youth, and change to it should be made to make it more reliable. These three reason are many reason to why our YCJA has been to lenient and they should begin to take action and take the time to improve on there system

Canada Youth Criminal Justice Act has not met the philosophy needs. Our youths today have been committing crime very similar if not the same crime and have been punished with minor offences, but adults are being punished more severely for the same crime they both have committed. Is our YCJA been to lenient lately? Two cases that caught my attention were both shooting cases one is which a youth shot his father and killed him and another case of a man who shot and his girlfriend and luckily she is still alive. The 12 year old boy who name was not released due to is...

... middle of paper ...

...d father and only receiving 11 years in juvenile for his offence. Will this help control young people from committing more offences or is our system to lenient? Consequences are to lenient in our system if punishments are this minor for our youths, they will most likely commit another offence in the future, having more strict punishments ensure our youths from committing another offence and the punishments being more strict can create fear thus reducing crime rates in Canada. If Canada's YCJA for our Youth was more strict crime rates will begin to drop dramatically, and a safer and brighter future is for to be seen. We may not be comfortable or approve of kids being punished severely for a crime just because there young, but we will have a question of will this happen again in the future. Regardless of their age, we need our YCJA to have more serious consequences.

Show More
Related

  • The Youth Criminal Justice Act (YCJA)

    1058 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Youth Criminal Justice Act, often called by the name of YCJA, is specifically made for youths ages varying from 12 to 17 that disobey the law. In April 1, 2003, the YCJA replaced the previous justice act called Young Offenders Act due to several negative concerns. “These concerns included the overuse of the courts and incarceration in less serious cases, disparity and unfairness in sentencing, a lack of effective reintegration of young people released from custody, and the need to better take into account the interests of victims.” The main purpose of the YCJA aims to have a fairer and more equitable system. Although the YCJA is an effective law within the justice system, a main aspect/characteristic that needs to remain, is keeping the

    Read More

  • Youth Criminal Justice Act (YCJA)

    863 Words  | 2 Pages

    Youth crime is a growing epidemic that affects most teenagers at one point in their life. There is no question in society to whether or not youths are committing crimes. It has been shown that since 1986 to 1998 violent crime committed by youth jumped approximately 120% (CITE). The most controversial debate in Canadian history would have to be about the Young Offenders Act (YOA). In 1982, Parliament passed the Young Offenders Act (YOA). Effective since 1984, the Young Offenders Act replaced the most recent version of the Juvenile Delinquents Act (JDA). The Young Offenders Act’s purpose was to shift from a social welfare approach to making youth take responsibility for their actions. It also addressed concerns that the paternalistic treatment of children under the JDA did not conform to Canadian human rights legislation (Mapleleaf). It remained a heated debate until the new legislation passed the Youth Criminal Justice Act. Some thought a complete overhaul was needed, others thought minor changes would suffice, and still others felt that the Young Offenders Act was best left alone.

    Read More

  • Youth Criminal Justice Act Essay

    803 Words  | 2 Pages

    Most young offenders get into trouble with the law only once. But the younger children are when they first break the law, the more likely they are to break the law again (Statistics Canada study, 2005). The Youth Criminal Justice Act (YCJA) attempts to acknowledge that different youth need different sentences within the justice system, while ensuring that it is fair and equitable for them. Many people, both in Canada, and around the world, believe that youth are not reprimanded harshly enough for the crimes they commit and that they are, in general, are able to squeeze through the justice system without punishment. Others, believe that the justice system does not treat youth fairly and punishes them without acknowledging that rehabilitation

    Read More

  • Juvenile Justice

    690 Words  | 2 Pages

    The problem of dealing with juvenile justice has plagued are country for years, since the establishment of the first juvenile court in 1899. Prior to that development, delinquent juveniles had to be processed through the adult justic3e system which gave much harsher penalties. By 1945, separate juvenile courts existed in every single state. Similar to the adult system, all through most of the 20th century, the juvenile justice system was based upon a medical/rehabilitative representation. The new challenges of the juvenile court were to examine, analyze, and recommend treatment for offenders, not to deliver judgment fault or fix responsibility. The court ran under the policy of “parens patriae” that intended that the state would step in and act as a parent on behalf of a disobedient juvenile. Actions were informal and a juvenile court judge had a vast sum of discretion in the nature of juvenile cases, much like the discretion afforded judges in adult unlawful settings until the 1970s. In line with the early juvenile court’s attitude of shielding youth, juvenile offenders’ position was often in reformatories or instruction schools that were intended, in speculation, to keep them away from the terrible influences of society and to encourage self-control through accurate structure and very unsympathetic discipline. Opposing to the fundamental theory, all through the first part of the century, the places that housed juveniles were frequently unsafe and unhealthy places where the state warehoused delinquent, deserted, and deserted children for unclear periods. Ordinary tribulations included lack of medical care, therapy programs, and even sometimes food. Some very poor circumstances continue even today.

    Read More

  • Juvenile Intake Process

    1161 Words  | 3 Pages

    harder on juveniles in hopes it will detour youths from committing crimes. “Punitive model of

    Read More

  • The Youth Criminal Justice Act ( Ycja )

    1199 Words  | 3 Pages

    The YCJA took effect on April 1, 2003, emphasizing the use of diversion programs that were aiming to decrease the use of over-reliance on incarceration for young non-violent persons (The Youth Criminal Justice Act Summary and Background, 2016). Extrajudicial measures were one of the main tactics. Extrajudicial measures should be used in all cases where they are be able to hold a young person accountable for his/her actions, be efficient to hold...

    Read More

  • Juveniles Tried as Adults

    1273 Words  | 3 Pages

    A movement has started in our country to renovate the juvenile justice system. This movement wants to erase any differences between young offenders and adult criminals. Almost all fifty states have changed their juvenile justice laws, allowing more youths to be tried as adults...

    Read More

  • Juvenile Courts

    902 Words  | 2 Pages

    Serious crimes such as murder, burglary and rape have raised questions as to whether the young offenders should face severe punitive treatment or the normal punitive measures in juvenile courts. Many would prefer the juveniles given harsh punishment in order to discourage other young people from engaging in similar activities and to serve as a lesson to these particular offenders. However, results from previous studies indicate such punitive measures were neither successful nor morally acceptable. Instead, the solutions achieved have unfairly treated the youths and compromised the society status (Kristin, page 1).

    Read More

  • Juvenile Justice

    1319 Words  | 3 Pages

    In today's society juveniles are being tried in adult courts, given the death penalty, and sent to prison. Should fourteen-year olds accused of murder or rape automatically be tried as adults? Should six-teen year olds and seven-teen year olds tried in adult courts be forced to serve time in adult prisons, where they are more likely to be sexually assaulted and to become repeat offenders. How much discretion should a judge have in deciding the fate of a juvenile accused of a crime - serious, violent, or otherwise? The juvenile crime rate that was so alarming a few years ago has begun to fall - juvenile felony arrest rates in California have declined by more than forty percent in the last twenty years. While California's juvenile population rose by a half a million since the middle and late 1970's, juveniles made up less than fifth-teen percent of California's felony arrests in 1998, compared to thirty percent in 1978; according to the Justice Policy Institute. The juvenile arrests have dropped back, even as the population of kids between ages of ten and eight-teen has continued to grow, and the number of kids confined in the California Youth Authority (CYA) has fallen. With all the progress our society has made in cutting back in juvenile crimes there is still a very serious problem. But if locking kids up is the best way to address it, how do we explain a drop in crime when there are more teens in California and fewer in custody? First we must look at the economy around us. With so many job opportunities available more and more teenagers find honest ways to keep busy and make money. Our generation has a brighter future than the generation a decade ago. Next we look at successful crime prevention efforts: after-school programs, mentoring, teen outreach programs, truancy abatement, anti-gang programs, family resource centers. There is evidence that these programs are beginning to pay off. Sending more, and younger teens through the adult court system has been a trend across the country in reaction to crimes, such as school shootings and violent rapes. Yet evidence shows that treating youth as adults does not reduce crime. In Florida, where probability wise more kids are tried as adults then in any other state, studies found that youth sent through the adult court system are twice as likely to commit more crimes when they're release...

    Read More

  • Youth Gangs

    3412 Words  | 7 Pages

    ... crime and should adopt policies that compliment better socialization of youths. The seriousness of youth crime trends must be addressed with punishments that pay retribution to society. It is equally important that youths are not excluded from society by a legal system that does not recognize their special needs. Rehabilitation measures must address the socialization problems that children are facing with their families, schools, and media pressures. Children will be given alternatives to their delinquent behaviours that may not have been obvious or initially appealing. These changes will result in the prevention and decline of youth gang related crime. Youth gangs are not inevitable. Some social reorganization backed by government policies will eliminate the youth perception that youth gangs are socially acceptable. The Youth Criminal Justice Act (2002) adopts socially focused policies that will better address the social disorientation of youth that lead them into youth gangs. Its implementation is a positive step towards effectively dealing with the changed social forces affecting Canadian youths. Better socialization of youths is paramount to eliminating youth gangs in Canada.

    Read More

  • Youth Court Action Planning Plan (YCAPP)

    1159 Words  | 3 Pages

    The purpose of this report is to provide the courts and judges in the matter of Martin A. case an overview and critical analysis of his case through the evaluation process of Youth Court Action Planning Plan (YCAPP). Before discussing Martin A., it is a good idea to understand the roles and functions of the YCAPP. Over the course of history, the Canadian legal system has always struggled with successfully dealing with youth offenders until the introduction of youth criminal justice act in 2003. Youth criminal justice act has reduced the number of cases, charges, and convictions against the youth hence resulting in a much more efficient way to deal with youth crime across the country (Department of justice, 2017). A vital component

    Read More

  • The Canadian Juvenile Justice System

    1184 Words  | 3 Pages

    Youth and juvenile crime is a common and serious issue in current society, and people, especially parents and educators, are pretty worried about the trend of this problem. According to Bala and Roberts, around 17% of criminals were youths, compared to 8% of Canadian population ranging between 12 to 18 years of age between 2003 and 2004 (2006, p37). As a big federal country, Canada has taken a series of actions since 1908. So far, there are three justice acts in the history of Canadian juvenile justice system, the 1908 Juvenile Delinquents Act, the 1982 Young Offenders Act, and the 2003 Youth Criminal Justice Act. In Canada, the judicial system and the principle of these laws have been debated for a long time. This paper will discuss how these three laws were defined and why one was replaced by another.

    Read More

  • Criminal Justice: Youth And Justice

    2009 Words  | 5 Pages

    Changes in public opinion, as well as in criminal justice legislation, have begun to recognize and reflect the unique circumstances at play in the lives of youth who commit crime. That is, it has become widely recognized that the justice system cannot treat youth offenders with the same response that adult offenders are treated with. Minaker and Hogeveen (2009) support this claim and state that youth require “a qualitatively different response” (p. 249). Two examples that reflect this sentiment are: the notion that youth are biologically and psychologically underdeveloped when compared with adults, and that youth possess a unique combination of risk and need that exacerbates their vulnerability as youth.

    Read More

  • Juveniles Crimes

    640 Words  | 2 Pages

    One mistake could ruin ones life forever and this crimes need to cease an end. As stated in Kids and Kids- Until They Commit Crime by Marjie Lundstrom, she wrote that “children as young as twelve and thirteen are being charged as adults in America’s courts”. For example, in the film, a kid name Andrew age of fifteen was sentenced to life without parole. Police also declared that he was a leader of a gang inside the jail and send him to much more severe adult jail. The court that decides and sentenced those young kids to life in prison without parole is very cruel penalty to discipline a teenager. I think this is very unfair to him because he doesn’t even know what was going on and what are they talking about. He couldn't really do anything about it. The worst about this is that he was so young when this happens. The judge should have tried to understand his situation according to his age. This story makes me feel very disappointed because he was very young to be punished as harsh as an adult considering he was only

    Read More

  • Youth Perpetrators Essay

    407 Words  | 1 Pages

    (http://www.judcom.nsw.gov.au/publications/research-monographs-1/monograph26/mono26.pdf page 83) During the 1990s, punishments were brought into the Court. They permitted the “active” recovery of perpetrators. These are results which need the active involvement of the youth perpetrator in his or her recovery. The nature of these results is such that the youth can only accomplish the result through, for instance, demonstration of efforts to alter his or her actions and/or of remorse. Youth Justice Conferencing is an element of the Young Offenders Act 1997. Though this Act is evidently about redirecting first-time and less severe perpetrators from the Children’s Court, it nevertheless contributes to the variety of results possible for the Court. Under the Young Offenders Act, it was possible for the Court to warn a youth, and also assign them to youth justice conferencing. The ideology and objectives which form the foundations of conferences debatably assist the progress of the youth’s recovery better than a majority of the punishments found in section thirty-three of the Children (Criminal Proceedings)

    Read More

More about Youth Criminal Justice Act

Open Document