The Importance Of Adult Sentencing

I am writing to endorse an amendment to the Youth Criminal Justice Act and Bill C-10. Youth that have committed violent crimes are dangerous and should be held accountable. The system in place is already lenient with minor offences and offers many chances at rehabilitation. Most importantly, violent crimes deserve adult sentencing. I would like to endorse the aspect of the Bill that states adult sentences can be imposed on young people over 14 years of age.

One reason for my approval of this aspect is that youth offenders that have committed violent crimes can be dangerous. They are not always a victim of circumstance and those over 14 years of age are old enough to be held responsible for their actions. I agree that youth offenders should …show more content…
Violent crimes are different than the common minor offences committed by youth, such as theft of $5,000 and under, mischief, cannabis possession, and break and enter, therefore they should not be dealt with as such. A violent crime is defined by the Supreme Court of Canada as “an offence in the commission of which a young person causes, attempts to cause or threatens to cause bodily harm”. This includes crimes such as murder, attempted murder, manslaughter, and sexual assault. In order to impose adult sentencing on youth, they must be proven guilty and it must be proven that a youth sentence is not long enough for the person to be held accountable for their behaviour. In my opinion, this is a reasonable measure and is not likely to cause over-incarceration. According to Statistics Canada, the number of older youth admitted to the correctional system has remained consistent for the past 5 years. In addition, the offender’s criminal history is taken into consideration. This means a youth who has been found guilty for many previous crimes may have a more harsh sentence than a youth who has been found guilty for no previous crimes. It is reasonable for violent offenders to receive adult