youth sentencing

english legal system - youth sentencing

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Intensive Supervision and Surveillance Programme (

Advantages

  • can prevent them from reoffending
  • get to the true cause of the problem
  • can be longer than custodial sentence
  • learn responibility

Disadvantages

  • over 50% of those who complete the ISSP don't reoffend, however, many don't complete the programme
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ISSP and Advocacy

Advantages

  • gives someone for the offender to look up to
  • organise a strict time table to prevent reoffending
  • cheaper than prison
  • opportunity to stay in education

Disadvantages

  • it doesn't force the offender to make the right decision
  • one wrong move and the offender is placed in custody
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Restorative Order

Advantages

  • gives the victim a chance to meet the offender to help them with any suffering from crime
  • allows the offecnder to realise the consequences of their crime
  • can prevent reoffending

Disadvantages

  • could possibly create more distress for the victim
  • offender may not show remorse
  • victim has to give consent and may not be ready for the time of sentence
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Action Plan Order

Advantages

  • brings all the support agences for offender together to make a separate plan
  • offers consistency
  • keeps offender in education

Disadvantages

  • the offender has to co-operate
  • all agencies have to agree on the plan
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Parenting Order

Advantages

  • helps parents to learn the correct way of dealing with their children
  • gives them support and counselling
  • gives some responsibilty to the parent

Disadvantages

  • people argue its punishing parents more than offender
  • parents should want to change their ways
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Youth Court - The Facts

Youth Court

  • youth offenders aged 10-17 dealt with in Youth Court, a branch of Magistrates Court
  • children under the age of 10 can't be charged with a criminal offence
  • Youth Court sits in private, with only those involved in case allowed in court; press aren't allowed to publish name, address or school etc.
  • magistrates who sit on bench of youth court must be under 65 and have special training; must be atleast one male and one female who sit
  • procedure is much less formal and parents or guardian of child under 16 must attend. however court can request that parents of 16 and 17 attend

Crown Court

  • few instances when a young offender is tried in crown
  • cases such as; murder, manslaughter, ****, death by dangerous driving
  • those aged over 14 can be tried in crown where they are being charged with a serious offence or are being jointly charged with an adult
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R V Secretary of State for the Home Department

In light of this case, a Practice Direction was issued by the Lord Chief Justice, laying down guidelines on how young offenders should be tried in the adult Crown Court. In particular, the trial judge must take into account "the age, maturity and development of the young defendant on trial."

This might include;

  • removing wigs and gowns
  • familiarisation visits
  • restricted public access to the courtroom
  • ensuring everyone in the court sits on the same level
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Custodial Sentence - Young Offenders Institution

Age

  • 18 - 20
  • once reach 21, youth will be transferred to adult prison

Duration

  • minimum is 21 days
  • maximum is that allowed for offence

What It Involves

  • low ratio's of staff and generally accomodate larger number of youth's
  • consequently, they are less able to address the individual needs
  • considered to be inappropriate for more vulnerable young offenders
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Custodial Sentence - Detention and Training Orders

Age

  • 12 - 21
  • only under 15 if persistant offender
  • 10 and 11 if a custodial sentence is necessary to protect public

Duration

  • minimum is 4 months
  • slots of 6, 10, 12, or 18 months and maximum is 24 months

What It Involves

  • first half of sentence in custody, sencond half under supervision of Youth Offending Team
  • may be combined with ISSP
  • can be at any secure accomodation eg. YOI's, secure training centre etc.
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Community Based Sentence - Community Orders

Age

  • 16+

Duration

  • varies depending on the orders imposed
  • same as adults

What It Involves

  • different types of activities such as; carpentry, conservation, decorating, working with elderly or vulnerable
  • sentence is supervised by Probation Service
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Community Based Sentence - Curfew Order

Age

  • 10+

Duration

  • between 2 and 12 hours in any 24 hour period
  • 16 and above - up to 6 months
  • under 16 - 3 months

What It Involves

  • this sentence requires a young person to remain for set periods of time at a specified place
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Community Based Sentence - ISSP

Age

  • 10 - 17

Duration

  • 6 months spent on ISSP
  • most intensive for the first 3 months

What It Involves

  • education and training (basic literacy and numeracy)
  • interventions to tackle offending behaviour
  • reparation to victim and community
  • assistance in developing interpersonal skills
  • family support
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Community Based Sentence - Reparation Orders

Age

  • 10-18

Duration

  • maximum of 24 hours work

What It Involves

  • designed to help young offenders understand the consequences and take responsibility
  • they must repair harm caused to victim (victim/offender mediation) or indirectly in the community (cleaning up graffiti or community work)
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Fines

Age

  • 10+

Duration

  • age 10-13 = maximum £250
  • age 14-17 = maximum £1000
  • age 18+ = maximum £5000 in magistrates

What It Involves

  • for under 16 year olds the fins is the responsibility of their parents/carers and their financial circumstances will be taken into account
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Miscellaneous Sentence - Parenting Order

Age

  • for parents

Duration

  • up to 3 months
  • can be extended to 12 months

What It Involves

  • given to parents/carers of youth's who offend, truant, asbo etc.
  • the parent doesn't get a criminal record
  • they are required to attend counselling or guidance sessions
  • conditions may also be imposed on them eg. attending their child's school, ensuring their child does not visit a particular place unsupervised etc.
  • breach of order results in criminal offence for parents/carers
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Miscellaneous Sentence - Action Plan Order

Age

  • 10-18

Duration

  • 3 months

What It Involves

  • intensive community based programme
  • supervised by YOT
  • tailored to the risks/needs of the youth
  • eg. education/training, repairing harm done, attend Attendance Centre
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Miscellaneous Sentence - Discharges

Age

  • 10+

Duration

  • absolute discharge - no sentence
  • conditional discharge - 6 months to 3 years

What It Involves

  • absolute discharge - where guilt is admitted or found guilty, but no further action is taken against them
  • conditional discharge - no immediate punishment, but if the youth commits another offence during specified period, they can be brought back to court and resentenced
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Youth Justice System

Youth Offending Team (YOT)

  • made up of representatives from police, probation service, social services, health, education, drugs and alcohol misuse and housing offices
  • each YOT is managed by a YOT manager who is responsible for co-ordinating the work of the youth justice services
  • it identifies the need of each young offender by assessing them with a national assessment
  • it identifies the specific problems that make the youth offend and measures the risk they impose on others
  • this enables the YOT to identify suitable programmes and prevent re-offending

Probation Service

  • aims are to carry out proper punishment of offenders and ensure their awareness of the effects of crime on victims and community
  • offenders failure to comply with supervision leads to breach action and can mean being returned to court to be re-sentenced
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