Author: Western Australia. Office of the Auditor General
Title: Performance Examination: The Juvenile Justice System: Dealing With Young People Under the Young Offenders Act 1994.
Summary: The Young Offenders Act 1994 and its later amendments set out how the Western Australian government expects the justice system will deal with young people who have come into contact with the law. The Act recognizes that there should be special provisions for the fair treatment of young people. For this reason, the Act requires police to consider, under suitable circumstances, directing young people away from courts, by using cautions and referrals to juvenile justice teams. The Act also requires police to use detention on remand as a last resort, by releasing the young persons on bail under the supervision of a suitable responsible adult. After a good start and concerted efforts to implement the Act in its early years, the critical strategies have started to lose momentum. This examination found that in recent years, fewer young people who have come into contact with police have been kept out of the court system, and this cannot be fully explained by trends in juvenile crime. Police referrals to juvenile justice teams have also been on the decline, along with the use of cautions. A supporting paper presents a cost savings to the Western Australian Government of pre-sentencing direction measures - police cautions; referrals to juvenile justice teams by the police; referrals to juvenile justice teams by the Children's Court; and court conferences.
Details: Perth: Auditor General, 2008. 54p., 76p.
Source: Internet Resource
Year: 2008
Country: Australia
URL:
Shelf Number: 117637
Keywords:
Alternatives to Incarceration, JuvenilesCost-Benefit AnalysisJuvenile DetentionJuvenile Justice Systems (Western Australia)Juvenile Offenders |
