Police Contact with Young People with Cognitive Disabilities: Perceptions of Procedural (In)justice

The interactions of police with young people with cognitive disabilities (YPWCD) have seldom been considered in research, even though this group is over-represented in the criminal justice system. This article presents the results of a qualitative study into YPWCD’s experiences with police in Queensland, Australia. Semi-structured interviews were undertaken with service providers who work with YPWCD and YPWCD themselves. The procedural justice perspective was used as an analytic framework to provide an insight into YPWCD’s relationships with the police. Findings point to ways in which police can better respond to YPWCD in procedurally just ways, as well as to the role that family and service providers might play in supporting this outcome.

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‘I’m not getting out of bed!’ The criminalisation of young people in residential care

Australian & New Zealand Journal of Criminology ◽

10.1177/0004865818778739 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 52 (1) ◽

pp. 76-93 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Alison Gerard ◽

Andrew McGrath ◽

Emma Colvin ◽

Kath McFarlane

Keyword(s):

Criminal Justice ◽

Young People ◽

Criminal Justice System ◽

Residential Care ◽

Police Officers ◽

Justice System ◽

Service Providers ◽

Care Service ◽

Management Tool ◽

Children In Care

Evidence from both Australian and international jurisdictions show that children in residential care are over-represented in the criminal justice system. In the current study, we interviewed 46 professionals who had contact with young people in residential care settings in New South Wales, Australia. Our sample included police officers, residential care service providers, legal aid lawyers and juvenile justice workers, about their perceptions of the link between residential care and contact with the criminal justice system. Factors identified by the participants included the care environment itself, use of police as a behavioural management tool, deficient staff training and inadequate policies and funding to address the over-representation. These factors, combined with the legacy of Australia’s colonial past, were a particularly potent source of criminalisation for Aboriginal children in care.

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Give Them a Chance: Public Attitudes to Sentencing Young Offenders in Western Australia

Youth Justice ◽

10.1177/1473225418791660 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 18 (2) ◽

pp. 169-187

Author(s):

Suzanne Ellis ◽

Natalie Gately ◽

Shane Rogers ◽

Andrée Horrigan

Keyword(s):

Public Opinion ◽

Criminal Justice ◽

Young People ◽

Drug Treatment ◽

Criminal Justice System ◽

Justice System ◽

Public Attitudes ◽

Structured Interviews ◽

The Public ◽

Prior Record

Public opinion is often reported as punitive towards sentencing young people. Attitudes remain important to investigate given their potential to influence policy within the criminal justice system. Therefore, it is important to understand the formation of these attitudes and their consistency with sentencing principles. Semi-structured interviews ( n = 72) and surveys ( n = 502) were used to gauge opinions of sentencing young people under different scenario manipulations (age, weapon, drug treatment, prior record). The findings revealed the public expected punishment, but favoured rehabilitation with an opportunity to repent, suggesting the public are open to alternatives to ‘tough on crime’ approaches.

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‘Young People Just Resolve It in Their Own Group’: Young People’s Perspectives on Responses to Non-Consensual Intimate Image Distribution

Youth Justice ◽

10.1177/14732254211030570 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 147322542110305

Author(s):

Alexa Dodge ◽

Emily Lockhart

Keyword(s):

Criminal Justice ◽

Young People ◽

Criminal Justice System ◽

Criminal Law ◽

Justice System ◽

Victim Blaming ◽

Legal Intervention ◽

Image Distribution ◽

Survey Responses ◽

Insight Into

While responses to non-consensual intimate image distribution (NCIID) often highlight criminal law remedies, little is known about how young people are choosing to respond to this act and whether they perceive legal intervention as a useful tool. Drawing from interviews with 10 teenagers and survey responses from 81 adult supporters, we provide insight into how young people perceive the supports available to them for responding to NCIID. We find young people may avoid seeking support from both the criminal justice system and adults in general due to fears of adult overreaction, victim blaming and shaming, and self/peer criminalization.

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