NationStates Jolt Archive

I heard about this a couple years ago being as young offenders or people under the age of 18 had reduced charges, and had their records cleared when they were adults.

Now I'm surfing on the internet to find that the above is all false. So I go to the Canadian government web site and find a whole load of nothing about what they WANT to do... well, you know how bills are written.

So in short, does any Canadian know what the deal is right now? And It would be interesting to know how the rest of the world deals with their young offenders!

I heard about this a couple years ago being as young offenders or people under the age of 18 had reduced charges, and had their records cleared when they were adults.

Now I'm surfing on the internet to find that the above is all false. So I go to the Canadian government web site and find a whole load of nothing about what they WANT to do... well, you know how bills are written.

So in short, does any Canadian know what the deal is right now? And It would be interesting to know how the rest of the world deals with their young offenders!
As far as I can tell, minors are "automatically" considered to be young offenders. Young offenders have the right to privacy, and their names can't be mentioned in the news, and they recieve lighter sentences. The courts act like it's a big deal every time, but it seems to be pretty standard procedure to try them as adults. If a 14 year old boy kills someone, he could be tried and sentenced as an adult. I'm not sure how the courts decide...
I read something a few years back, I think either in psychology today or discover magazine about how the part of the brain that controls decision making and judgement does not fully develop in males until they are as old as 25. No matter what you do, you shouldn't be locked up for life for a crime comitted when you were young and stupid. Prison terms of any length can't be good for young people. I don't see how much rehabilitation can take place if you're locked up with 40 year old hardened criminals.

As far as I can tell, minors are "automatically" considered to be young offenders. Young offenders have the right to privacy, and their names can't be mentioned in the news, and they recieve lighter sentences. The courts act like it's a big deal every time, but it seems to be pretty standard procedure to try them as adults. If a 14 year old boy kills someone, he could be tried and sentenced as an adult. I'm not sure how the courts decide...
I read something a few years back, I think either in psychology today or discover magazine about how the part of the brain that controls decision making and judgement does not fully develop in males until they are as old as 25. No matter what you do, you shouldn't be locked up for life for a crime comitted when you were young and stupid. Prison terms of any length can't be good for young people. I don't see how much rehabilitation can take place if you're locked up with 40 year old hardened criminals.

Kids are growing up faster today.

They have sex at earlier ages, get pregnant, and commit greater acts of violence.

When you see some 15 year old brat on a talk show talking about he gets laid all the time and part of some gang, than it's time to remove the young offender's act.

So in short, does any Canadian know what the deal is right now? And It would be interesting to know how the rest of the world deals with their young offenders!

It's now called the Youth Criminal Justice Act.

I'm not sure about sentencing and records. It does give youth who are charged with a crime a few rights that adults do not have, such as right to call a parent, that sort of thing.

You can still apply to have someone tried as an adult, I believe.

Separating prosecution of a human at the juvenile line is stupid, anyway. There are mature fifteen-year-olds, just as there are immature-twenty-five-year-olds, so to classify them by age and use that as the sole reason for letting them receive lesser punishment is ridiculous and unjust. Crazy people need to be punished just like regular people, as well, for a guy that goes crazy or is crazy and kills someone can do the same thing again, and his freedom isn't worth the risk, especially when the person he killed isn't getting a second chance at freedom.

"What does this crazy person do?"
"He rolls his turds into little balls and eats crayons."
"Fine, I'll feed him for the rest of his life!"
"And what does this crazy person do?"
"Oh, he kills productive members of our society."
"Well he shoulda rolled his shit into little balls and ate crayons, 'cause the penalty is much less severe."

Separating prosecution of a human at the juvenile line is stupid, anyway. There are mature fifteen-year-olds, just as there are immature-twenty-five-year-olds, so to classify them by age and use that as the sole reason for letting them receive lesser punishment is ridiculous and unjust. Crazy people need to be punished just like regular people, as well, for a guy that goes crazy or is crazy and kills someone can do the same thing again, and his freedom isn't worth the risk, especially when the person he killed isn't getting a second chance at freedom.

"What does this crazy person do?"
"He rolls his turds into little balls and eats crayons."
"Fine, I'll feed him for the rest of his life!"
"And what does this crazy person do?"
"Oh, he kills productive members of our society."
"Well he shoulda rolled his shit into little balls and ate crayons, 'cause the penalty is much less severe."

Ron White! YAY! :D

Young offenders have the right to privacy, and their names can't be mentioned in the news

Really... cause why this came up for me is because of a news about a 15 year old girl murdering someone... tis weird, says I.

Also theres a WHOLE lot of blurbs about rehabilitation, but again, nothing specific. Ah, I guess the mystery that is our justice system will never be unmasked!

I heard about this a couple years ago being as young offenders or people under the age of 18 had reduced charges, and had their records cleared when they were adults.

Now I'm surfing on the internet to find that the above is all false. So I go to the Canadian government web site and find a whole load of nothing about what they WANT to do... well, you know how bills are written.

So in short, does any Canadian know what the deal is right now? And It would be interesting to know how the rest of the world deals with their young offenders!
Laws were modified when the Youth Criminal Justice Act (2003) was adopted.
This act was fought by the Quebec government, and I think they have managed to get a "special status" for Quebec, because we are still on the "Code Civil" legal system, and not on "Common Law". A Quebec Supreme Court ruling declared the whole thing unconstitutional, and thus the new code is not applied in Quebec (and in any province that wishes to fight it).

The Youth Criminal Justice Act specifies mostly that:

1- Young offenders from 12 to 17 years old are judged as minors, and their record is erased when they get 18.

2- ...UNLESS they commit a FEDERAL OFFENSE (first degree murder for example), which would call for a prison term of more than 2 years. In this case, offenders aged from 14 to 17 years old CAN be judged like adults IF a psychological profile can show they are mature enough to understand it all.


PS: The Youth Criminal Justice Act was accepted by PEI, was rejected by Quebec as too tough, and was rejected by Ontario as too lenient.

Laws were modified when the Youth Criminal Justice Act (2003) was adopted.
This act was fought by the Quebec government, and I think they have managed to get a "special status" for Quebec, because we are still on the "Code Civil" legal system, and not on "Common Law". A Quebec Supreme Court ruling declared the whole thing unconstitutional, and thus the new code is not applied in Quebec (and in any province that wishes to fight it).

The Youth Criminal Justice Act specifies mostly that:

1- Young offenders from 12 to 17 years old are judged as minors, and their record is erased when they get 18.

2- ...UNLESS they commit a FEDERAL OFFENSE (first degree murder for example), which would call for a prison term of more than 2 years. In this case, offenders aged from 14 to 17 years old CAN be judged like adults IF a psychological profile can show they are mature enough to understand it all.


PS: The Youth Criminal Justice Act was accepted by PEI, was rejected by Quebec as too tough, and was rejected by Ontario as too lenient.

LOL. I think that's pretty fair... I mean I know my brother stole when he was younger. I'm talking 10, so to have that on your credit for the rest of your life. But federal offenses is good to keep on there. But that all depends on what is considered a federal offense. If beating a kid until he can't move or think, but not murdering him is not a federal offense, then maybe we have problems. Plus, 17.5 years old and you steal? I wonder what that person will be doing in .5 years... oh well!

Canada City']Kids are growing up faster today.

They have sex at earlier ages, get pregnant, and commit greater acts of violence.Please re-examine your wording in that sentence. I'm assuming that by "greater acts of violence" you did not mean more violent then having sex and getting preggers, but I could be giving you too much credit.

Canada City']When you see some 15 year old brat on a talk show talking about he gets laid all the time and part of some gang, than it's time to remove the young offender's act.Having consentual sex after you reach physical maturity hurts no one. Gang activity is never ok, but 15 year old who get involved in gangs are almost always coming from poverty, and they do not search out gangs. Gang members who recruit minors should be put away, but 15 year old should not for any reason be imprisoned with other criminals.
Why you chose to liken sex and teen pregnancy to violence is a mystery to me.

In Oklahoma there is a youth offender act where if you're under a certain age you get different punishments usually rehabilitation type things and then your record is clean. This doesn't apply to certain crimes like murder though. I wish I remembered more about it but it's been a year since I took my juvenile delinquency class.