A Critique of the Principles of the Young Offenders Act*

1987 ◽  
Vol 32 (6) ◽  
pp. 440-443 ◽  
Author(s):  
George A. Awad
Keyword(s):  
Juvenile Justice ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Due Process ◽  
Unique Feature ◽  
Juvenile Justice System ◽  
Legal Rights ◽  
Young Offenders ◽  
Clinical Process ◽  
Therapeutic State ◽  
Young Offenders Act

A unique feature of the Young Offenders Act is a section on the Principles of the Act. The principles clearly focus on the responsibility of young offenders, their legal rights, and the protection of society. The focus on the due process of the law is a welcome addition to the Juvenile Justice system. However, these principles do not recognize any other rights for adolescents, downgrade the importance of their needs, and do not take into account the cognitive, psychological and social functioning of adolescents. In addition, the principles implicitly reverse those important principles that have guided our society and the clinical process for more than a century; namely, a shift from a “therapeutic state” to a “legalistic state”, the roles of institutions in our society, and the adultomorphization of adolescence.

scholarly journals A Critical Appraisal of the Juvenile Justice System under Cameroon's 2005 Criminal Procedure Code: Emerging Challenges

2017 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 147
Author(s):  
Simon Tabe
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Juvenile Justice ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Due Process ◽  
Juvenile Justice System ◽  
Criminal Procedure ◽  
Young Offenders ◽  
Procedure Code ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
The Government

The objective of this article is to examine the changes introduced by the 2005 Cameroonian Criminal Procedure Code on matters of juvenile justice, considering that before this Code, juvenile justice in Cameroon was governed by extra-national laws. In undertaking this analysis, the article highlights the evolution of the administration of juvenile justice 50 years after independence of Cameroon. It also points out the various difficulties and shortcomings in the treatment of juvenile offenders in Cameroon since the enactment of the new Criminal Procedure Code. The article reveals that the 2005 Code is an amalgamation of all hitherto existing laws in the country that pertained to juvenile justice, and that despite the considerable amount of criticism it has received, the Code is clearly an improvement of the system of juvenile justice in Cameroon, since it represents a balance of the due process rights of young people, the protection of society and the special needs of young offenders. This is so because the drafters of the Code took a broad view of the old laws on juvenile justice. Also a wide range of groups were consulted, including criminal justice professionals, children’s service organisations, victims, parents, young offenders, educators, advocacy groups and social-policy analysts. However, to address the challenges that beset the juvenile justice system of Cameroon, the strategy of the government should be focussed on three areas: the prevention of youth crime, the provision of meaningful consequences for the actions of young people, and the rehabilitation and reintegration of young offenders. Cameroonian law should seek educative solutions rather than to impose prison sentences or other repressive measures on young offenders. Special courts to deal with young offenders should be established outside the regular penal system and should be provided with resources that are adequate for and appropriate to fostering their understanding of juvenile crime.

Ad Populum Argumentation in Criminology: Juvenile Diversion as Rhetoric

1984 ◽  
Vol 30 (4) ◽  
pp. 624-647 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arnold Binder ◽  
Gilbert Geis
Keyword(s):  
Juvenile Justice ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Juvenile Justice System ◽  
Social Process ◽  
Young Offenders ◽  
Large Array ◽  
Social Scientists ◽  
Ad Populum ◽  
Juvenile Diversion

For a variety of reasons, some valid, many irrelevant, it has become fashionable within sociological criminology to condemn juvenile diversion. Participants in the condemnatory rituals identify each other as insiders by catchy words and phrases (like “widening the net”), and frequently substitute rhetoric for logic in their argumentation aimed both at gaining cultic recognition and winning over the unwary. Perhaps the most damaging consequence is the forfeiture of influence in an important social process by a large array of social scientists. Contrary to the predictions of some in the cult, diversion remains a flourishing mode of serving young offenders, as indeed it must so long as the present juvenile justice system remains in operation.

Lesbian, Bisexual, Questioning, Gender-Nonconforming, and Transgender (LBQ/GNCT) Girls in the Juvenile Justice System

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Angela Irvine ◽  
Aisha Canfield ◽  
Jessica Roa
Keyword(s):  
Juvenile Justice ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Health Care Services ◽  
Due Process ◽  
Juvenile Justice System ◽  
Gender Nonconforming ◽  
Care Services ◽  
System P ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Harmful Effects

LGBTQ youth’s involvement with the juvenile justice system occurs in the context of family conflict, parental rejection of homosexuality, trauma, and hostility at school and in the community. As they run away from abuse, LGBTQ youth are more likely to commit survival crimes and get arrested for offenses related to homelessness. This chapter focuses on the experiences of lesbian, bisexual, queer, and gender-nonconforming girls in juvenile justice settings and examines how biases about gender and sexual orientation affect court decisions and correctional practices. Lack of awareness and training about LGBTQ issues compounds the harmful effects of homophobia, transphobia, and racism and adversely impacts lesbian, queer, and gender-nonconforming girls’ rights to due process, as well as their access to appropriate health care services. This chapter makes recommendations for LGBTQ-affirming practices in juvenile justice settings.

Stealing Conflicts in Juvenile Justice: Contrasting France and Canada.

1987 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
pp. 141-151 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jim Hackler ◽  
Antoine Garapon
Keyword(s):  
Juvenile Justice ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Juvenile Justice System ◽  
Social Systems ◽  
Internal Conflict ◽  
The People ◽  
Criminal Justice Systems ◽  
The University ◽  
Positive Functions ◽  
Young Offenders Act

In 1976 Nils Christie gave a lecture at the University of Sheffield and suggested that conflicts in society performed certain positive functions. Conflicts are “property,” he argued, and belong to the people involved. The participants in conflict may wish to see them resolved in ways that satisfy them, but sometimes those conflicts are taken away and become the property of courts, judges, lawyers or social workers. Christie contends that conflicts make an important contribution to society, and that highly industrialized societies have too little rather than too much internal conflict. He feels that we must organize social systems so that conflicts are nurtured and made visible. In particular we must see to it that professionals do not monopolize the handling of conflicts. In our criminal justice systems, the victims of crime have in particular lost their rights to participate in conflict resolution.In this paper we use Christie's concept of “stealing conflicts” as a tool for analysing the consequences of the increased use of lawyers in the juvenile justice system as a result of theYoung Offenders Act. TheActpurports to enhance juveniles' responsibility and accountability for their actions, but this end is undermined to the extent that lawyers steal the conflicts. Furthermore, we argue that this trend toward legalism, which characterizes North America today, is different from patterns in some European countries such as France.

A Critique of Diversionary Juvenile Justice

1978 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 59-71 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bruce Bullington ◽  
James Sprowls ◽  
Daniel Katkin ◽  
Mark Phillips
Keyword(s):  
Juvenile Offenders ◽  
Juvenile Justice ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Due Process ◽  
Juvenile Justice System ◽  
Troubled Youth ◽  
Parens Patriae

The increasingly zealous support today for diversion of youth from the juvenile justice system is a consequence of several widely held notions: ( 1) Traditional strategies for dealing with juvenile offenders have not worked; ( 2) informal diversion is used both widely and effectively now; and ( 3) the most humane treatment of troubled youth is based upon the parens patriae philosophy of justice. Yet, the authors contend, diversion may be seen as potentially dangerous and harmful, and they present several arguments against expansion of diversionary services: (1) The concept's ambiguity allows many to promote expansion of the juvenile justice system in the form of diversion "to" other programs, while true diversion "from" the system is nonexistent; ( 2) the goals of diversionary programs-such as elimination of stigmatizing labels and formal duplica tion of existing informal processes-are unattainable; ( 3) formal diversion is incompatible with due process ideals. Until these difficulties have been resolved, diversionary options should be viewed with caution.

scholarly journals La justice des mineurs au Québec : 25 ans de transformations (1960-1985)

Criminologie ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 189-213 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean Trépanier
Keyword(s):  
Juvenile Justice ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Juvenile Justice System ◽  
Juvenile Court ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
Young Offenders ◽  
Court Referrals ◽  
Court Dispositions ◽  
Legislative Changes ◽  
Over Time

This paper provides an overview of some of the changes undergone by the juvenile justice system in Quebec since 1960, with a particular attention to the evolution of its legal framework. Major legislative changes have stressed children's rights and diversion. The underlying philosophy of the law has been changed extensively, particularly concerning young offenders. Statistics reveal that the number of court referrals has increased considerably over time, and that diversion policies have been unable to change this trend. Juvenile court dispositions seem to show a greater degree of intervention than before.

Ad Populum Argumentation in Criminology: Juvenile Diversion as Rhetoric

1984 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 309-333 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arnold Binder ◽  
Gilbert Geis
Keyword(s):  
Juvenile Justice ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Juvenile Justice System ◽  
Social Process ◽  
Young Offenders ◽  
Large Array ◽  
Social Scientists ◽  
Ad Populum ◽  
Juvenile Diversion

For a variety of reasons, some valid, many irrelevant, it has become fashionable within sociological criminology to condemn juvenile diversion. Participants in the condemnatory rituals identify each other as insiders by catchy words and phrases (like “widening the net”), and frequently substitute rhetoric for logic in their argumentation aimed both at gaining cultic recognition and winning over the unwary. Perhaps the most damaging consequence is the forfeiture of influence in an important social process by a large array of social scientists. Contrary to the predictions of some in the cult, diversion remains a flourishing mode of serving young offenders, as indeed it must so long as the present juvenile justice system remains in operation.

Young Offenders, ‘Secure Colleges’ and Reforming Criminals

2015 ◽  
Vol 79 (3) ◽  
pp. 211-228 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zia Akhtar
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Juvenile Justice ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Juvenile Justice System ◽  
Criminal Responsibility ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Young Offenders ◽  
The Uk ◽  
And Control

The UK government has decided on a policy goal that is set out in the Criminal Justice and Courts Bill 2014. This goal is to invest in ‘Secure Colleges’, which are institutions planned to make young criminals ‘better citizens not better criminals’. The question is: What is the role of punishment: deterrence, incapacitation or rehabilitation? This article considers the juvenile justice system in Scotland with reference to the objectives set out in the Kilbrandon Report in 1964 and evaluates the perspective of early criminologists who state that offenders exercise a free choice in embarking on a life of crime. It is also evaluated in the light of those empirical studies that expose the harsh discipline and control in prisons as ‘oppressive’ and not likely to reform the offenders. The UK policy regarding young offenders underwent a change after the James Bulger murder in 1993 and became a deterrence-based approach. This has led to measures on both sides of the border which were retributive, such as the lowering of the age of criminal responsibility and the early intervention of probation services. This article considers the modern themes of juvenile justice and argues that the ‘Secure Colleges’ will be a corrective institution that should inculcate a more informed policy towards reintegration for the young offenders so that they emerge from the criminal justice system as improved citizens after completing their sentence.

Practicing in France What Americans Have Preached: The Response of French Judges to Juveniles

1988 ◽  
Vol 34 (4) ◽  
pp. 467-485 ◽  
Author(s):  
James C. Hackler
Keyword(s):  
World War Ii ◽  
North America ◽  
Juvenile Justice ◽  
Due Process ◽  
Group Home ◽  
Young Offenders ◽  
Community Settings ◽  
World War ◽  
The Public ◽  
Young Offenders Act

Despite a downturn in delinquency in North America, juvenile justice systems and the public act as if there has been an increase in delinquency. Calls for “get-tough” policies are common and the system is responding accordingly. The recent Canadian Young Offenders Act also reflects this theme. However, most criminologists argue for keeping juveniles in normal community settings, and France may have accomplished what these scholars have been recommending since World War II. Relatively few youths are placed in closed custody. When a juvenile is being helped, the notion of punishment is set aside. For example, if a juvenile leaves a group home it is not an offense. Incarceration is not used when a youth fails to obey administrative rules. This paternalistic system pays minimal attention to due process, but it may avoid the negative aspects of North American systems while providing services that are utilized more effectively.

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