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OSSTF District 11- Thames Valley
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District 11 Office |
Education Matters Online
News
Volume 1, Issue 1: April 7, 2003
Youth Criminal Justice ActBy Don Edgar, Federation Services Officer |
On April 1, 2003, The Young Offenders Act will be replaced by new legislation called the Youth Criminal Justice Act.
The new legislation has been drafted in response to identified shortcomings in the Young Offenders Act, and in particular to address the extremely high incarceration rate for young offenders. The Ontario rate of incarceration is currently the highest in the world.
How will this new legislation impact on schools? In non-violent situations, where the offending behaviour is minor, relatively speaking, (for e.g. a small theft, or marijuana possession), police officers called to schools will have more latitude to charge or not to charge utilizing three different resolution processes:
- Extrajudicial Measures
- Extrajudicial Sanctions
- Court
Extrajudicial Measures:
 | are often the most appropriate and effective way to address youth crime |
| may be used where a non-violent offence has been committed by a youth who has, or who has not, previously been found guilty of an offence |
| may be used where a youth has previously been dealt with by the use of extrajudicial measures. |
Extrajudicial measures may take many forms, but are basically informal resolutions to the behaviour which could be recommended in a meeting with administration, the student, and a police officer. Recommendations could include taking no further action, issuing a caution by the police, or a caution combined with a written apology, etc. In other words, it is possible that the officer will decide that no charges are necessary in the circumstances outlined. This is new, and a school suspension may be sufficient resolution, possibly with release of the youth to his parents with an accompanying caution for the offence. An internal police record will be maintained for future use. School administrators must make clear to parents that although no charges were laid, an offence was committed. The school still has a responsibility to deal with it according to existing school and board policies.
Extrajudicial Sanctions:
| are used only when extrajudicial measures are inadequate (too serious an offence, too many previous offences) |
| officer recommends to Crown Attorney that charges are applicable and Crown decides which charges will proceed. |
| qualifying offenders who accept responsibility for their actions will be sent to one of the existing diversion programs or to the new Youth Justice Committee for case resolution. |
Court / Trial:
Where the alleged offence is serious enough, or where other factors negate the use of Measures or Sanctions, the officer may charge the youth with the intent of having the matter resolved in court. Offences involving violence or weapons will likely result in arrest, court charges, and trial.
Further information is available at the Youth Justice Renewal Initiative pages of the Department of Justice Canada website.
Information paraphrased from a Y.C.J.A implementation information article by Det. Tom Snelling, Youth Crime Coordinator, Peel Regional Police.
