DOCSLIB.ORG

The Constitutionality of Canada's Youth Courts Under the Young Offenders Act

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
The Constitutionality of Canada's Youth Courts Under the Young Offenders Act The Constitutionality of Canada's Youth Courts under the Young Offenders Act John P. McEvoy* The author examines the constitutionality of Uauteur 6tudie la constitutionalit6 des tri- Canada's Youth Courts as presently consti- bunaux pour adolescents, tels que pr~sente- tuted under the Young Offenders Act. He ar- ment constitus dans les provinces canadiennes par la Loi sur les jeunes contrevenants. Scion gues that the fact that these courts are presided l'auteur, l'article 96 de la Loi constitution- over by provincially appointed judges con- nelle, 1867 est viol6 puisque ces tribunaux travenes section 96 of the Constitution Act, sont pr~sid~s par des juges nomm~s par les 1867. An historical inquiry leads to the de- provinces. Une analyse historique r~v~le que termination that powers of jurisdiction which des pouvoirs qui 6taient en 1867 propres A une cour sup~rieure, de district ou in 1867 were exclusively those of a superior, de comt6 ont W d~volus aux tribunaux pour adoles- district or county court have been conferred cents par la Loi sur les jeunes contrevenants. on the Youth Courts by the Young Offenders A la suite d'une application du test mis de Act. Through an application of the test set l'avant dans l'arrt Renvoi relatifd la Loi de out in Reference Re The Residential Tenan- 1979 sur la location residentielle, l'auteur soutient que ces pouvoirs ne peuvent tre cies Act, 1979, it is asserted that this juris- exerc~s par des tribunaux dont les juges ne diction cannot be exercised by a non-section sont pas nomm~s suivant la procddure de 96 court. l'article 96. *Ofthe Faculty of Law, University of New Brunswick. ©McGill Law Journal 1986 Revue de droit de McGill REVUE DE DROIT DE McGILL [Vol. 32 A new era in the administration of juvenile justice in Canada was launched with the coming into force of the Young Offenders Act.' Besides tinkering with procedures, the Act significantly altered juvenile justice by implementing a diversion system which allows deserving young persons in conflict with the law to avoid the necessity of appearing before a court for disposition. The purpose of this note is neither to discuss the merits of diversion nor the other philosophical changes represented by the Act, but to present a problem arising from the tinkering: the proposition advanced is that the Young Offenders Act, as implemented, violates section 96 of the Constitution Act, 1867,2 which requires the Governor General to appoint the judges of the superior, district and county courts. The Young Offenders Act repealed and replaced the Juvenile Delinquents Act, which, although amended over time, remained in substance as originally enacted in 1908. 3 Both Acts followed a similar philosophy by establishing systems of juvenile justice separate and apart from that to which adult offenders are subject. The adjudicative tribunal with jurisdiction under the two Acts, a "juvenile court" under the former and a "youth court" under the current scheme, are similarly defined. That tribunal is either a new court established by the Legislature for the purpose, or an existing court designated or authorized by the Legislature, the Governor in Council or the Lieutenant Governor in Council to exercise jurisdiction under the Act.4 The present "youth courts", as with the former "juvenile courts", in each province of Canada are presided over by judges appointed by the respective Lieutenant Governors in Council.5 One important distinction between the two schemes is the range of offences covered. Under the Juvenile DelinquentsAct, the omnibus offence 'S.C. 1980-81-82-83, c. 110. The Act came into force on 2 April 1984, SI/84-56. 2Enacted as British North America Act, 1867 (U.K.), 30 & 31 Vict., c. 3. -Juvenile Delinquents Act, S.C. 1908, c. 40; R.S.C. 1927, c. 108, as rep. The Juvenile Delin- quents Act, 1929, S.C. 1929, c. 46; R.S.C. 1952, c. 160; Juvenile Delinquents Act, R.S.C. 1970, c. J-3. 4Juvenile DelinquentsAct, R.S.C. 1970, c. J-3, s. 2(l); Young Offenders Act, supra, note 1, s. 2(1). 5Newfoundland: Provincial Court, per Nfld Reg. 72/84; Nova Scotia: Family Court, per N.S. Reg. 65/84 Schedule A, s. 2; Prince Edward Island: Provincial Court, per EC 282/84; New Brunswick: Provincial Court, per O.C. 85-882; Quebec: Youth Court, per Courts ofJusticeAct, R.S.Q. c. T-16, ss 110-14; Ontario: Unified Family Court (a superior court) Provincial Court (Criminal Division) and Provincial Court (Family Division), per Courts of Justice Act, 1984, S.O. 1984, c. 11, ss 47(b), 67(2) and 75(b); Manitoba: Provincial Court (Family Division), per The ProvincialCourtAct, S.M. 1982-83-84, c. 52, s. 19(l)(b) and per O.C. 283/84; Saskatchewan: Provincial Court, per O.C. 378/84; Alberta: Provincial Court, per The Provincial Court Act, R.S.A. 1980, c. P-20, as am. Young Offenders Act, S.A. 1984, c. Y-l, s. 38; British Columbia: Provincial Court, per ProvincialCourtAct, R.S.B.C. 1979, c. 341, s. 2(4), as am. Young Offenders (B.C.) Act, S.B.C. 1984, c. 30, s. 59 and per O.C. 617/84. 1986] NOTES of "delinquency" was substituted for the myriad of possible violations of federal and provincial statutes and municipal by-laws. 6 It also extended the reach of the statute to include sexual immorality or "any similar form of vice". The Young Offenders Act, however, is limited to violations of federal statutes or regulations and retains the character or identity of each offence as the specific offence, characterized as being either an indictable or sum- mary conviction offence. Thus a violation of the theft provisions of the CriminalCode retains its identity as theft and is the offence with which the young person is charged rather than, as under the former Act, being sub- sumed within the general offence of "delinquency". At minimum, it is this retention of the character or identity of each federal offence which, it is suggested, is fatal to the Young Offenders Act as implemented with prov- incially appointed judges acting as youth court judges. Over the eight decades of its existence, the Juvenile Delinquents Act faced only two substantial challenges on constitutional grounds. The first concerned the validity of subsection 20(2) of the Act which allowed a court to impose liability upon a municipality for the financial support of a child in care. This challenge was maintained over a twenty year period from its initial rejection in 1962 by Schatz J. in Re Dunne7 to its ultimate acceptance in 1982 by the Supreme Court of Canada in Regional Municipality of Peel v. MacKenzie.8 The statutory imposition of this financial burden upon a municipality was finally determined not to be supportable as, or necessarily incidental to, the criminal law and procedure justification of the Act and was found to encroach upon provincial jurisdiction in relation to municipal institutions under subsection 92(8) of the Constitution Act, 1867. Accord- ingly, the severance doctrine was applied to annul any reference to munic- ipalities in the section, the imposition of such a financial burden being tra vires the jurisdiction of Parliament. The second challenge questioned the constitutional validity of the sub- stitution of the procedures of the Juvenile Delinquents Act for those under provincial legislation where a violation of provincial law was alleged against a juvenile. The case arose out of an alleged speeding infraction under the provincial Motor Vehicle Act of British Columbia. Rather than being pro- ceeded against under the Juvenile DelinquentsAct, the accused, a juvenile, was tried by the magistrate as if he were an adult and upon conviction was "Juvenile Delinquents Act, supra, note 4, ss 2(1) and 3(1). 7(1962), [1962] O.R. 595, 33 D.L.R. (2d) 190 (H.C.). 8(1982), [1982] 2 S.C.R. 9, 42 N.R. 572, Martland J. Three years earlier in A.G. Ontario v. Regional Municipality of Peel (1979), [1979] 2 S.C.R. 1134, [1981] 2 W.W.R. 540, the Court approved a construction of the Act such that a committal order to a private enterprise home was not authorized by s. 20(l). This was sufficient to dispose of the case without addressing the constitutional issue. McGILL LAW JOURNAL [Vol. 32 fined $400. Under subsection 92(15) of the ConstitutionAct, 1867 the prov- incial legislatures enjoy exclusive jurisdiction in relation to "the imposition of punishment by Fine, Penalty, or Imprisonment for enforcing any Law of the Province ...". The issue, therefore, was whether such provincial en- forcement procedures and penalties in respect of violations of provincial law could be ousted by the Parliament of Canada in the exercise of its jurisdiction under subsection 91(27) of the Constitution Act, 1867 over "the Criminal Law ... including Procedure in Criminal Matters". More specifi- cally, was the creation of an all-encompassing offence of "delinquency" in the Juvenile Delinquents Act a valid exercise of the criminal law power? Fauteux J., for the Supreme Court of Canada in A.G. British Columbia v. Smith,9 held that it was. Two well-accepted general propositions in respect of federal power under subsection 91(27) of the ConstitutionAct, 1867 were found to be controlling: subsection 91(27) confers upon Parliament juris- diction in relation to criminal law in its widest sense,' 0 and it includes the power to create new crimes."l Given the breadth of these propositions, his Lordship did no more than merely accept that the Act was a proper exercise of the criminal law power: The primary legal effect of the Jurenile DelinquentsAct ..
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Archived Content Contenu Archivé
    ARCHIVED - Archiving Content ARCHIVÉE - Contenu archivé Archived Content Contenu archivé Information identified as archived is provided for L’information dont il est indiqué qu’elle est archivée reference, research or recordkeeping purposes. It est fournie à des fins de référence, de recherche is not subject to the Government of Canada Web ou de tenue de documents. Elle n’est pas Standards and has not been altered or updated assujettie aux normes Web du gouvernement du since it was archived. Please contact us to request Canada et elle n’a pas été modifiée ou mise à jour a format other than those available. depuis son archivage. Pour obtenir cette information dans un autre format, veuillez communiquer avec nous. This document is archival in nature and is intended Le présent document a une valeur archivistique et for those who wish to consult archival documents fait partie des documents d’archives rendus made available from the collection of Public Safety disponibles par Sécurité publique Canada à ceux Canada. qui souhaitent consulter ces documents issus de sa collection. Some of these documents are available in only one official language. Translation, to be provided Certains de ces documents ne sont disponibles by Public Safety Canada, is available upon que dans une langue officielle. Sécurité publique request. Canada fournira une traduction sur demande. HISTORY OF THE LAW FOR JUVENILE DELINQUENTS No. 1984-56 Ministry of the Solicitor General of Canada Secretariat Copyright of this document does not belong to the Cffln. Proper authorization must be obtained from the author fa any intended use. Les droits d'auteur du présent document n'appartiennent pas à i'État.
    [Show full text]
  • The Youth Criminal Justice System 327 Looking Back Youth Criminal Legislation: a Brief History
    The Youth Criminal 1100 Justice System What You Should Know Selected Key Terms • How do the Juvenile Delinquents alternative measures presumptive offence Act, the Young Offenders Act, and program young offender the Youth Criminal Justice Act extrajudicial measure differ? How are they similar? Young Offenders Act (YOA) foster home • How are young people treated youth criminal differently from adults when group home Youth Criminal Justice Act they break the law? juvenile delinquent (YCJA) • What options are available to the police in dealing with PoliceP report that rate of youths charged young non-violent, fi rst-time offenders? with criminal offences declines 26% • What are a youth criminal’s legal rights? • What options are available Teen gets 10 years to judges in sentencing youth criminals? Fewer • When is custody an for killing family appropriate sentence for a youth criminal? youth in court Chapter at a Glance and in 10.1 Introduction YOUTH HOMICIDES UP 10.2 The Youth Criminal Justice Act custody 10.3 Legal Rights of Youths 3 PERCENT IN 2006 10.4 Trial Procedures school over a cecellphone 10.5 Youth Sentencing Options Grade 11 teen stabbedbb d att school over a cellphone Violent crimes committed by youth receive increased media attention, as refl ected in these headlines. 332626 Unit 2 Criminal Law NEL 10.1 Introduction Activity Youth crime is a hot topic in Canada, and just about everybody has an To learn more about opinion on it. The headlines on page 326 present confl icting views on youth youth crime statistics, crime. Most suggest youth crime is on the rise, yet Statistics Canada recently Go to Nelson released fi gures that provide a different picture.
    [Show full text]
  • Juvenile Justice in the Gaza Strip
    Al Mezan Center for Human Rights Fact Sheet Juvenile Justice in the Gaza Strip 2012 to 2016 2016 Introduction It goes without saying that present-day youth are the adults of the future. It follows that, if a minor who comes into contact with the law is not effectively rehabilitated, he or she is faced with the prospect of an adulthood of crime. From this rationale develops the understanding that establishing a holistic, comprehensive juvenile justice system is a fundamental safeguard in the respect, protection, and promotion of human rights, and is a critical factor in building a crime-free society. International legal protections for children related to juvenile justice are contained primarily in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). The CRC outlines minimum protections and guarantees for children and articulates international human rights norms and principles that specifically apply to children. The juvenile justice “Beijing Rules” contain the UN’s standard minimum rules for the administration of juvenile justice. Together, the child’s best interests principle and imprisonment only as a last resort and for the shortest appropriate period of time form the basis of obligations for duty bearers concerned with juvenile justice. It follows that all minors are entitled to a fair and public hearing by a competent, independent, and impartial tribunal. Also, that torture and ill-treatment are absolutely prohibited without exception. These obligations grant juvenile offenders rights that are vital for their legal protection,1 rehabilitation, and reintegration into society, by detailing procedures that must be followed for the care and trial of juvenile offenders.
    [Show full text]
  • Canadian Law 10
    Canadian Law 10 The Youth Criminal 90 Justice System Terms—Old & New • A youth criminal is a person who is 12–17 years old and is charged with an offence under the current Youth Criminal Justice Act (YCJA). • A young offender was a person aged 12–17 who was charged with an offence under the previous Young Offenders 90 Act (YOA). • A juvenile delinquent was a young person from the age of 7 or older who was charged as a young offender or youth criminal under the historic Juvenile Delinquents Act (JDA). Canadian Law 40S R. Schroeder 2 Juvenile Delinquents Act • Until the 1890s, there was no distinction between how adults and youth were treated by the law. • In 1892, the Criminal Code was amended to try children separately from adults. • In 1908, the federal government passed the Juvenile Delinquents 90 Act (JDA). • The age limit under the JDA ranged from 7 to 16 or 18 years old (depending on the province). • Youth who committed crimes were treated as “delinquents,” not criminals; focus was to rehabilitate, not punish them. • Legal rights of juveniles were mostly ignored and as a result their sentences were often unfair and inconsistent. Canadian Law 40S R. Schroeder 3 Young Offenders Act • The Young Offenders Act (YOA) officially replaced the JDA in 1984. • The minimum age changed from 7 to 12 and the maximum age was set at 17 in every province and territory. • The YOA recognized 90 the rights of youth as guaranteed in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. • Common criticisms of the YOA included: – being too soft on young offenders – not properly addressing serious and violent offences – lacking a clear philosophy on youth justice Canadian Law 40S R.
    [Show full text]
  • Download Download
    “Delinquents Often Become Criminals”: Juvenile Delinquency in Halifax, 1918-1935 MICHAEL BOUDREAU Au début du 20e siècle, la délinquance juvénile à Halifax était perçue comme un sérieux problème social et moral qu’il fallait résoudre sans tarder. Par conséquent, entre 1918 et 1935, de nombreux représentants de la justice pénale de Halifax endossèrent pleinement la plupart des facettes du système judiciaire moderne du Canada applicable aux jeunes afin de prendre des mesures contre les jeunes délinquants de l’endroit. En faisant appel à ce nouveau régime de réglementation (notamment le tribunal de la jeunesse et le système de probation des jeunes) pour lutter contre la délinquance juvénile, Halifax était à l’avant-plan, aux côtés d’autres villes, des efforts visant à réglementer et à criminaliser la vie d’enfants essentiellement pauvres et issus des milieux ouvriers, ainsi que de leurs familles. During the early part of the 20th century, juvenile delinquency in Halifax was perceived to be a serious social and moral problem that had to be solved without delay. Consequently, between 1918 and 1935, many of Halifax’s criminal justice officials fully embraced most facets of Canada’s modern juvenile justice system in order to deal with the local juvenile delinquents. By utilizing this new regulatory regime (notably the juvenile court and probation) to grapple with juvenile delinquency, Halifax was in the forefront, along with other cities, of the efforts to regulate and criminalize the lives of primarily poor, working-class children and their families. THE CENTRAL GARAGE ON GRAFTON STREET in downtown Halifax had been the site of two thefts in the spring of 1923.
    [Show full text]
  • The Semantics of Repression: Linking, Opposing, and Linking Again Rehabilitation and Protection of Society Verónica B
    Document generated on 10/01/2021 6:22 p.m. Revue générale de droit The Semantics of Repression: Linking, Opposing, and Linking again Rehabilitation and Protection of Society Verónica B. Piñero Volume 36, Number 2, 2006 Article abstract Having explored the youth criminal legislation enacted by the Canadian URI: https://id.erudit.org/iderudit/1027109ar federal government from the year 1857 to the year 2005, the author attempts to DOI: https://doi.org/10.7202/1027109ar demonstrate that youth criminal intervention has moved from the notion of "child protection" to the notion of "protection of society." The significance of See table of contents this theoretical shift is that, while the former sort of intervention is mostly concerned with the notions of "reintegration" and "inclusion", the latter is concerned with the notions of "deterrence" and "exclusion." For this study, the Publisher(s) author first analyzes the societal factors that led Canadian parliamentarians to enact the Juvenile Delinquents Act (1908). In addition, she focuses on a specific Éditions Wilson & Lafleur, inc. amendment enacted in the year 1924 that "increased" the number of behaviors to be controlled through criminal law legislation. Second, the author discusses ISSN the circumstances that led parliamentarians to enact the Young Offenders Act (1982) and the Youth Criminal Justice Act (2002). Moreover, she examines an 0035-3086 (print) amendment enacted in the year 1995 that modified the declaration of 2292-2512 (digital) principles of the Young Offenders Act by introducing the notion of "crime prevention." Finally, she analyzes a case law released in the year 2003 by the Explore this journal Quebec Court of Appeal, Québec v.
    [Show full text]
  • Youth Justice and the 'New Street Urchins' in Canada
    Youth Justice and the 'New Street Urchins' in Canada Kathy Sharon Powelson BA (Honours), Simon Fraser University, 2001 THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS In the School of Criminology O Kathy Sharon Powelson 2005 SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY Spring 2005 All rights reserved. This work may not be reproduced in whole or in part, by photocopy or other means, without permission of the author. Approval Name: Kathy Sharon Powelson Degree: Master of Arts Title of Thesis: Youth Justice and the "New Street Urchins" in Canada Examining Committee: Chair: Dr. Gail Anderson Professor of Criminology Dr. Robert Gordon Senior Supervisor Professor of Criminology Dr. Brian Burtch Supervisor Professor of Crimonology Dr. Robert Adamsoki External Examiner Chair, Criminology Department Kwantlen University College Date Approved: 101 200r SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY PARTIAL COPYRIGHT LICENCE The author, whose copyright is declared on the title page of this work, has granted to Simon Fraser University the right to lend this thesis, project or extended essay to users of the Simon Fraser University Library, and to make partial or single copies only for such users or in response to a request from the library of any other university, or other educational institution, on its own behalf or for one of its users. The author has further granted permission to Simon Fraser University to keep or make a digital copy for use in its circulating collection. The author has further agreed that permission for multiple copying of this work for scholarly purposes may be granted by either the author or the Dean of Graduate Studies.
    [Show full text]
  • The Appellate Court View of the Juvenile Court Graham Parker Osgoode Hall Law School of York University
    Osgoode Hall Law Journal Article 2 Volume 7, Number 2 (January 1970) The Appellate Court View of the Juvenile Court Graham Parker Osgoode Hall Law School of York University Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.osgoode.yorku.ca/ohlj Article This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License. Citation Information Parker, Graham. "The Appellate Court View of the Juvenile Court." Osgoode Hall Law Journal 7.2 (1970) : 155-175. https://digitalcommons.osgoode.yorku.ca/ohlj/vol7/iss2/2 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Journals at Osgoode Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Osgoode Hall Law Journal by an authorized editor of Osgoode Digital Commons. The Appellate Court View of the Juvenile Court Abstract The juvenile court has had several distinct phases in its seventy years of existence. The ourc t was founded on a curious Victorian mixture of sentiment("child-saving"), seemingly sound political economy ("if we save the little asr cals from their environment, it will be the end of vice, spiritous liquors,crime and degradation") and hard-headed reform.' Although it is not always obvious in the reform literature, which is rather tear-stained, the last named factor is the most important. The ar dical reformers of the nineteenth century had been working in what might be called the juvenile court movement for many years before the court was itself established. Hard-headed reform resulted in a century of saving children from the thief's gallows, the agonies of chimney- sweeping, or working in coal mines and factories, and the temptations of the gin palaces and other dens of vice.
    [Show full text]
  • Justice for Young Offenders
    JUSTICE FOR YOUNG OFFENDERS 2007 The John Howard Society of Alberta gratefully acknowledges the efforts of members of the University of Alberta Faculty of Law Student Legal Services Pro Bono Program for their efforts in updating this paper. © The John Howard Society of Alberta 1999, 2007 JUSTICE FOR YOUNG OFFENDERS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Canadian youth justice legislation has evolved considerably since the mid nineteenth century when the first criminal laws specific to young people were introduced. The Juvenile Delinquents Act of 1908 created a separate justice system for young people and was based on a philosophy of parens patriæ, which required the state to act as a surrogate parent when children were neglected or in need of guidance. The JDA was subject to sharp criticism in the 1960s for its failure to recognize the civil rights of young people. The JDA remained in force until 1984, when the Young Offenders Act replaced it. The YOA attempted to balance the due process rights and special needs of young offenders with the protection of society. The YOA was not effective in reducing youth crime, and led to an unprecedented use of incarceration for young offenders. After amendments were made to the YOA in 1986, 1992, and 1995, it became clear that the Act needed to be replaced. In 1996, the Standing Committee on Justice and Legal Affairs conducted a review of the state of youth justice in Canada. After their report was released in 1997, the government began their workings on the Youth Criminal Justice Act. The Youth Criminal Justice Act, while an attempt to take youth crime seriously, cannot be considered a hard-line, retributive approach to reducing criminality among young people.
    [Show full text]
  • Juvenile Courts and Juvenile Delinquency
    U.N.B. LAW JOURNAL 17 Juvenile Courts and Juvenile Delinquency Roscoe Pound, at one time Dean of the Harvard Law School, said that the erection of the juvenile court was the greatest forward step in jurisprudence since the Magna Carta. This, of course, is a broad and startling statement. However, a man of Pound’s standing as a lawyer and an educator must have based this conclusion 011 sound reasoning. If just a brief glance is taken at our legal history one will find that there arc mam reasons win Dean Pound spoke as lie did about the juvenile court. In the earlier days of our jurisprudence the law was extremelv harsh in its treatment and punishment of wayward children. In Kngland in 1784, just 170 vears ago, a ten vcar old bov received sentence of death as a criminal. Our stern forefathers, apparently, made 110 distinction between adult and juvenile offenders. W ith them it was the old cruel law of an eve for an eve, and a tooth for a tooth. ' 1 here was at that time, and for many decades after, 011c law for all, men, women and children alike. And although the severity of the treatment and pun­ ishment of earlier davs was gradually relaxed, both for adults and children, it was not until the close of the last century that a distinction was made between adult and juvenile offenders, as to their treatment while in custodv pending trial, their mode of trial and their punishment upon conviction. In the words of the late Judge Wallace of Halifax: “Instead of blindlv following a method similar to the system proposed in Gilbert’s Mikado, ‘to make the punishment fit the crime’, our legis­ lation began to aim at making the punishment fit the criminal or the delinquent.” Space will not permit tracing the growth of this idea in Britain with respect to children.
    [Show full text]
  • The Juvenile Delinquents Act, 192-9
    The Juvenile Delinquents Act, 192-9 E.PEPLER Victoria, B.C. Especially since the revision of the Criminal Code, should not some consideration be given to revising the Juvenile Delinquents Act? This Act was first passed in 1908 and, after several amend- ments, was completely revised and consolidated in 1929 .1 Since then, with the exception of some minor amendments, the Act has remained unchanged . I will deal with it under the following head- ings : (1) General Scope of the Act; (2) Definition of "Child" ; (3) The Hearing before the Juvenile Court Judge; (4) Punishment and Penalties; (5) The Offence of Contributing to Juvenile De- linquency; (6) Appeals. 1. General Scope of the Act The Act is intended to give to the juvenile court exclusive juris- diction in cases of delinquency, including cases where, after the committing of the delinquency, the child has passed the age limit of a juvenile as defined by the Act. The Act creates a new offence not previously known to the law, the offence of delinquency, which comprises all criminal offences and all offences against provincial laws. It is a complete code in itself and sets out the procedure to be followed in dealing with the charge of delinquency before a juvenile court judge, including the procedure on appeal. It goes even further than this, in that it creates an additional offence ap- plicable mainly to adults, the offence of contributing to juvenile delinquency. 2. Definition of "Child" A "child" is defined in section 2 of the Act as meaning any boy or girl apparently or actually under the age of 16 years, with the *An address to the Section on the Administration of Criminal Justice, de- livered by Mr.
    [Show full text]
  • Juvenile Crime Prevention in Thailand
    JUVENILE CRIME PREVENTION IN THAILAND Chotima Suraritthidham* I. INTRODUCTION Many social problems arouse public concern. One of them is juvenile delinquency, which has been a concern for a long time. This paper presents a brief scope and the duties for juvenile crime prevention of the Department of Juvenile Observation and Protection (DJOP), which is an organization in the Thai juvenile justice system. The paper shows statistical data of juvenile delinquency and important processes leading to crime prevention, particularly assessments before adjudication hearing and interventions in juvenile training centres, which are secure confinements for youth. Challenges and solutions are combined in each topic as well. The DJOP was established to serve juvenile and family courts before adjudication hearings and after dispositional hearings for juvenile delinquents. It has duties as established by the Juvenile Court and the Juvenile Procedure Act (B.E. 2553) and the Administration of Juvenile Delinquent Rehabilitation Act (B.E. 2561). The goal of the DJOP is to reduce recidivism of juveniles who are adjudicated as delinquent. Minors who are charged and enter the juvenile and family court system are under the age of 18 years and not less than the age of 10 years. The DJOP supervises Juvenile Observation and Protection Centres (JOP) located in all 77 provinces of Thailand and 19 Juvenile Training Centres (JTCs) in main provinces such as Bangkok, Chiang-mai, Rayong, and Song-kha. The JOP centres serve juveniles before adjudication, while the JTCs serve the juvenile after the family court has entered an official disposition order to commit the juvenile. The DJOP’s responsibilities, thus, are related to the processes before the adjudicational and after the dispositional phases.
    [Show full text]