Youth Justice and Other Legislation (Inclusion of 17-year-old Persons) Amendment Bill 2016 (QLD)
Wednesday 21 September 2016 @ 12.31 p.m. | Crime
The Queensland Palaszczuk Government has introduced the Youth Justice and Other Legislation (Inclusion of 17-year-old Persons) Amendment Bill 2016 into Parliament on 15 September 2016 to finally end Queensland’s infamous stigma as the only Australian State where 17-year old offenders are subject to the adult justice system. The Bill will amend Queensland’s Juvenile Justice Act 1992 (QLD) to allow for its application to young people aged between 10 and 17 years of age as opposed to the current 16 years.
Background to the Bill
Since her government has come to power, the Palaszczuk Government has introduced legislation to overhaul youth justice in Queensland. One of the more notable changes was the removal of the Newman Government’s boot camp orders as a sentencing order. However, one area that has not received remedy until now is the contravention of the United Nation’s Conventions on the Rights of the Child; namely Queensland’s treatment of 17-year olds as adult prisoners.
Queensland has been criticised on several occasions by the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child in this regard. The Committee has expressed its concerns that its numerous requests have not been met since 2012. More recently, Australian Lawyers for Human Rights vice president Kerry Weste has made an urgent call to the Government to do something about the trauma child offenders experience as a response to ABC footage of a teenager prisoner in Brisbane pictured with a spit mask over his head. She said:
“Not only is this in clear contravention of Australia’s obligations under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, but it is also contrary to everything the available research tells us we should be doing to reduce rates of recidivism and rehabilitate young people.”
The Bill
According to the explanatory notes to the Bill, the objectives are two folds:
- Increase the upper age of who is a child for the purposes of the Youth Justice Act 1992, from 16 years to 17 years; and
- Establish a regulation-making power to provide transitional arrangements for the transfer of 17-year-olds from the adult criminal justice system to the youth justice system.
Queensland Attorney General, Yvette D’Ath, described the change as the “right thing to do”. She said:
“It is the right thing for our young people and it is the right thing for community safety because improving rehabilitation outcomes for 17-year-olds will make our communities safer. It is the right thing for Queensland and brings us into line with the rest of our nation and with international law and standards.”
Ms Palaszczuk is confident that the Bill will pass through Parliament smoothly and that the Government aims to remove all 17-year olds from adult prisons within 12 months. Ms D’Ath explained that the process will not be instantaneous upon commencement of the Act as there are a lot of issues to take into consideration. However, the government will work with stakeholders to identify all possible scenarios and develop arrangements to facilitate the transition over a reasonable period.
Ms D’Ath exclaimed in her explanatory speech:
“The government is unequivocal: bringing 17-year-olds into the youth justice will happen. This bill represents a profound opportunity to change the way Queensland delivers youth justice. If done right, these reforms can change young people’s lives and improve community safety, which is an objective that all of us in this chamber should strive to achieve. I commend the bill to the House.”
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Sources:
Youth Justice and Other Legislation (Inclusion of 17-year-old Persons) Amendment Bill 2016 [QLD] as reproduced in TimeBase LawOne
