The Youth Criminal Justice Act Yes I believe that The Youth Criminal Justice Act (YCJA) is effective. This act was recently created in 2003 and serves the purpose of protecting and fairly treating young offenders. It allows them to be tried in a youth court as opposed to an adult one, protects their identities, provides lighter sentences and creates more rehabilitating programs. This act rehabilitates in a positive and nurturing environment, allowing the offender to reach their full potential which has positive long-term effects. I think rehabilitation is key as I believe all humans are born good and from that point on various factors (such as environment, peers etc.) affect whether or
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One of the best things about the act is that youth offenders are separated from adult offenders. This is a good thing as the youth can be seriously abused by the older offenders. In addition to that, the youth can learn from them ( as they observe those around them on how to behave), not only causing them to adopt more aggressive traits but they can also learn more about gangs, drugs etc. This then will result in more criminal activity once they get out of jail and just create a vicious cycle of repeat offenders. Additionally, the YCJA creates a positive relationship between the justice system and the youth by showing compassion and care. This display of mercy would avoid any backlash or negative feelings towards the justice system and law enforcers which leads to decreased crime rates and creates more trust. Furthermore, the YCJA has proven to be effective by steadily decreasing the amount of cases in Youth Courts. “The Canadian youth courts completed about 48,000 cases in 2011/2012, resulting in the third consecutive annual decline and the lowest number of cases since data were first collected in 1991/1992. The decrease between 2010/2011 and 2011/2012 occurred across the country and among virtually all types of cases” (Statistics Canada). Of those cases only about 57% were actually found guilty, which is considerably lower than about a decade ago (Statistics Canada).Therefore, the Youth Criminal Justice Act has long-term
One of the best things about the act is that youth offenders are separated from adult offenders. This is a good thing as the youth can be seriously abused by the older offenders. In addition to that, the youth can learn from them ( as they observe those around them on how to behave), not only causing them to adopt more aggressive traits but they can also learn more about gangs, drugs etc. This then will result in more criminal activity once they get out of jail and just create a vicious cycle of repeat offenders. Additionally, the YCJA creates a positive relationship between the justice system and the youth by showing compassion and care. This display of mercy would avoid any backlash or negative feelings towards the justice system and law enforcers which leads to decreased crime rates and creates more trust. Furthermore, the YCJA has proven to be effective by steadily decreasing the amount of cases in Youth Courts. “The Canadian youth courts completed about 48,000 cases in 2011/2012, resulting in the third consecutive annual decline and the lowest number of cases since data were first collected in 1991/1992. The decrease between 2010/2011 and 2011/2012 occurred across the country and among virtually all types of cases” (Statistics Canada). Of those cases only about 57% were actually found guilty, which is considerably lower than about a decade ago (Statistics Canada).Therefore, the Youth Criminal Justice Act has long-term