Young Offenders in the uk

In England and Wales criminal proceeding cannot be brought against children below the age of 10 years. Offenders between the ages of 10 and 18 fall within the jurisdiction of youth courts. The same probation, curfew and community service orders may be given to 16- and 17-year-olds as to older offenders. Also available to the court are supervision orders or attendance centre orders.

Under a supervision order – which may remain in force for not more than three years – a child (10-13 years old) or young person (14-17 years old) normally lives at home under the supervision of a social worker or a probation officer. The order may require the offender to live in local authority accommodation and/or participate in specified activities at specified times.

Anyone under 21 years of age found guilty of an offence for which an adult may be imprisoned can be ordered to go to an attendance centre, as can an offender who refuses to comply with another order (for example, default in paying a fine or breach of probation order). The maximum number of hours of attendance is 36 (or 24 if the offender is aged under 16) spread over a period; the minimum is 12 hours, although where the offender is under 14 years of age the court has a discretion to impose a lesser total. The order aims to encourage offenders to make more constructive use of their leisure time.

The Crown Court powers to order long periods of detention for young offenders who commit serious crimes are extended under the provisions of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 to include 10- to 13-year-olds. The courts may detain 10- to 13-year-olds convicted of an offence for which an adult can be jailed for 14 year or more (including rape, arson, domestic burglary and robbery). Previously they could be given long term of detention only if they had been convicted of murder or manslaughter. Courts may also detain any 10- to 13-year-old convicted of indecent assault on a woman, where previously only 16- and 17-year-olds could be detained for this offence. Any offender aged 14 or over who is convicted of causing death by dangerous or drunken driving may also be detained. Detention may be in a local authority residential unit, a centre managed by the Youth Treatment Service or a young offender institution.

The basic custodial sentence for those aged 15 to 21 is detention in a young offender institution. Alternatives include fines and compensation, attendance centre orders (for up to 36 hours) and community service orders (for between 40 and 240 hours). In the area of parental responsibility, the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 extends the powers given to the courts by the Criminal Justice Act 1991. The 1991 act:

• strengthened courts’ powers to make parents attend hearings in cases involving offenders up to the age of 18;

• strengthened the liability on parents to pay fines and compensations arising from the crimes committed by their children;

• contained greater power for courts to order parents to take proper care and control of their children if necessary to prevent further offences;

• allowed such orders to be imposed for up to three year, or until the offender’s 18^th birthday.

Where local authorities have assumed parental responsibility, the duty to attend court and pay any fines also applies. Courts are also empowered to impose a secure training order on persistent offenders aged between 12 and 14. The order means a period of detention in a secure training centre followed by a period of supervision; it is availed for young offenders who have committed three or more imprisonable offences and who have failed to respond to punishment in the community. A further provision doubles the maximum sentence for 15- to 17-year-old in a young offender institution from one to two years.

In Scotlandcriminal proceeding may be brought against any child aged eight years or over, but the instructions of the Lord Advocate are necessary before anyone under 16 years of age is prosecuted. Children under 16 who have committed an offence or are considered to be in need of care and protection may be brought before a children’s panel. The panel, consisting of three lay people, determines in an informal setting where compulsory measures of care are required and if so, the form they should take. An official known as the reporter decides whether the child should come before a hearing. If the grounds for referral are not accepted by the child or parent, the case goes to the sheriff for proof. If he or she finds the grounds established, the sheriff remits the case to the reporter to arrange the hearing. The sheriff also decides appeals against a hearing’s decision. Custody in a young offender institution is available to criminal courts for young people aged between 16 and 21. Remission of part of the sentence for good behaviour, release on parole and supervision on release are available.

In Northern Ireland, those aged between 10 and 16 who are charged with a criminal offence are normally brought before a juvenile court. If the offender is found guilty of an offence punishable in the case of an adult by imprisonment, the court may order the offender to be placed in care, under supervision or on probation. The offender may be also required to attend a day attendance centre, be sent to a training school or committed to residence in a remand home. Non-custodial options are the same as in England and Wales. Offenders aged between 16 and 24 who receive custodial sentences of less than three years serve them in a young offenders’ centre.

b) Match the notions (1–10) with the definitions (a–j).

1. remand home a) the court that hears criminal cases against those under 18

2. curfew b)the principal Law Officer of the Crown in Scotland

3. youth court c) a correctional institution for young offenders supported by local authrities

4. Lord Advocate d) an institution where juvenile offenders wait to appear in court

5. children’s panel e) a regulation requiring people to remain indoors between specified hours, typically at night

6. young offender f) a repeater

7.remission g) a juvenile correction for those who serve their term

8. persistent offender h)the cancellation of a debt, charge, or penalty

9. young offender institution i) in Scotland, a group made up of citizens who deal with young offenders under 16

10. local authority j) a criminal who is not an adult in the eyes of

residential unit the law

c) Fill in the table and discuss the results in the group.

Part of Great Britain	Age of juvenile delinquent	Crime	Legal procedure	Punishment
England and Wales
Scotland
Northern Ireland

d) Act out the situations given below. Use the underlined phrases and word combinations from the text:

1. A law student is interviewing a youth court judge to prepare a report on the system of punishment of juvenile delinquents in England and Wales. The youth court judge is telling about supervision orders, attendance center orders, custodial sentences. The law student wonders what factors are taken into consideration when the youth court judge chooses punishments for young offenders. The youth court judge shares his experience.

2. Two law students are comparing the systems of punishment of juvenile delinquents in England and Scotland. They point out at the difference of age when the child is prosecuted, the difference in criminal proceeding, analyze where punishment is lenient and if it is good for the society. One student dislikes the Scottish system of punishment considering 8-year-old children to be small to be tried. The other student is sure the earlier a child knows about the consequences of his misbehavior the better for all is.

3. Two law students are comparing the systems of punishment of juvenile delinquents in England and Northern Ireland. They point out at the lots of common features both systems have as the age when the child is prosecuted for the first time, the similarity in criminal proceeding, kinds of punishment. One student wonders why 21-year-olds are tried by juvenile courts and don’t get the proper punishment for their crimes as adults do. The other student also believes that all guys older than 18 should be treated as major criminals, but not as juvenile delinquents. He/she also tries to explain why it is so in England and Northern Ireland.