NT Parliament to Address Issues with Youth Crime
Tuesday 21 March 2017 @ 9.42 a.m. | Crime | Legal Research
Early last month (8 February 2017), NT Chief Minister Michael Gunner announced in a Media Release the implementation of a youth crime overhaul for the Northern Territory including diversion workers, heavier use of NGO's, greater support through bail conditions and the expansion of youth justice and victims' conferencing.
The Chief Minister announced $18.2 million would be spent annually to try to stop crime before it happens by targeting at-risk children and providing diversion programs for young offenders, stating “The youth justice system is broken and today is the first big step towards fixing it.”
Crime Overhaul Components
52 new Youth Diversion Workers
This workforce will commence immediately and be operational in all regions within 3 months and the officers will:
- Provide professional support to courts and police to improve sentencing and diversion decisions;
- Provide early-intervention, case management and co-ordinate after hours youth activities in each region;
- Support enforcement of bail conditions to protect the public and reintegrate young people back into the community.
NGO Support
Aims to support NGO's delivering evidence-based diversion programs. According to the media release:
"These programs will include wilderness programs and boot camps either in the NT or other jurisdictions, focussing on skill development, road safety and drug and alcohol education. They will provide diversion options for police and the courts."
Support While on Bail
According to the Media Release, youth in the Northern Territory will be provided with "individualised support and a comprehensive range of programs to stop reoffending and meet bail conditions. This support will be provided by youth diversion workers as well as the NGO sector, including options for accommodation while on bail."
Expansion of youth justice and victims’ conferencing
Established within 3 months, this form of conferencing "is used in all Australian jurisdictions and is known to significantly reduce the likelihood of re-offending when compared to prosecution."
Public Reaction to the Announcement
Law Society NT president Tass Liveris said:
“Northern Territory courts lock up more young people than anywhere else in Australia, which is extremely expensive and does nothing to reduce crime and reoffending...For many years the Society has said that rather than spending money on locking people up, government ought to invest in programs such as diversion, bail support, youth conferencing and rehabilitation. Early childhood intervention is critical and is proven to help steer young people away from the criminal justice system."
Executive director of the NT Council of Social Services, Wendy Moreton, agreed and said the new plan was a good first step. According to both parties continued funding will be crucial to stem the current crime rise in the Northern Territory, especially in youth crime.
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