Youth Criminal Justice Act
The Youth Criminal Justice Act, YCJA for short, came into effect in 2003. It is a Canadian bill that deals with crimes committed by persons between the ages of 12 and 18, focusing on prevention of crimes and reintegration of juvenile offenders back into society.
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Changes to the Young Offenders Act
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The YCJA puts less emphasis on custody as a punishment for non violent crimes. In addition, the YCJA includes guidelines for out-of-court alternative sentencing including community service and letters of warning. All young offenders are subject to stricter monitoring when they are released from jail, and victims of crimes are now given access to youth court records.
Objectives
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The goal of the Youth Criminal Justice Act is to introduce concrete guiding principles into the juvenile court system, to reduce the overall incarceration rate of Canadian youth, and to make clear distinctions between violent and non violent crimes committed by young offenders.
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Criticism
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When the conservative regime of Stephen Harper took power in 2006, it challenged the Youth Criminal Justice Act on the grounds that the act was too lenient and that harsher sentencing would serve as a deterrent to potential offenders. The Supreme Court of Canada ruled that there was no basis within the YCJA for harsher penalties solely for the sake of deterrence, and the act stood as written.
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References
Resources
- Photo Credit gavel image by Cora Reed from Fotolia.com
