In-house research conducted by the Justice department showed over one-third of Canadians lack confidence in the youth criminal justice system.According to Blacklock’s Reporter, the researchers wrote the findings were “cause for concern.”“Overall one in five of respondents, 22%, reported being confident the youth criminal justice system is fair to all people,” said the report Perceptions of the Youth Criminal Justice System. “Twenty-nine percent reported being moderately confident and 39% reported not being confident.”“These results may show cause for concern as studies show lack of confidence in public institutions such as the youth criminal justice system may undermine the quality of services provided by the institutions,” wrote researchers.The report did not provide a specific reason for the lack of confidence in the justice system. The findings were based on National Justice Survey questionnaires completed by 4,949 people nationwide. However, the report did not disclose the cost of conducting the survey.A majority of Canadians, 52%, believed public safety should be the primary focus of delinquency courts. An even larger percentage, 84%, agreed that rehabilitation was important because defendants were children. Additionally, 60% of respondents agreed children should generally not face trial and sentencing on the same basis as adults.“The youth criminal justice system is based on the principle youth are presumed to be less morally blameworthy than adults,” said Perceptions. “It acknowledges youth should be held accountable differently than adults given their lack of maturity and greater level of dependency.”“Women as well as younger respondents were consistently more likely than men and older respondents to agree,” said the report. “These results suggest there is public support for a different and separate legal system to govern criminal cases involving youth.”“Most respondents, 73%, reported youth should be sentenced to custody when they commit a violent offence or when they are repeat offenders,” said Perceptions. “A small percentage of respondents, 5%, said youth should never be sentenced to custody.”In Canada, police-reported delinquency rates have declined over the past 20 years.According to the 2022 department of public safety report Statistical Snapshot of Youth at Risk and Youth Offending in Canada, the most common youth crimes included petty theft, mischief and common assault.“There is no single source of information to determine the number of youths who commit crimes in Canada,” said Snapshot. “Estimates can be obtained using various methods, e.g. self-reports, official records of convictions, charges or victimization surveys, each providing a slightly different picture of the phenomenon.”According to a Statistics Canada report Police-Reported Crime Statistics in Canada on August 27, there were only 932 charges filed under the Youth Criminal Justice Act last year, compared to 1,035 charges in the previous year.
In-house research conducted by the Justice department showed over one-third of Canadians lack confidence in the youth criminal justice system.According to Blacklock’s Reporter, the researchers wrote the findings were “cause for concern.”“Overall one in five of respondents, 22%, reported being confident the youth criminal justice system is fair to all people,” said the report Perceptions of the Youth Criminal Justice System. “Twenty-nine percent reported being moderately confident and 39% reported not being confident.”“These results may show cause for concern as studies show lack of confidence in public institutions such as the youth criminal justice system may undermine the quality of services provided by the institutions,” wrote researchers.The report did not provide a specific reason for the lack of confidence in the justice system. The findings were based on National Justice Survey questionnaires completed by 4,949 people nationwide. However, the report did not disclose the cost of conducting the survey.A majority of Canadians, 52%, believed public safety should be the primary focus of delinquency courts. An even larger percentage, 84%, agreed that rehabilitation was important because defendants were children. Additionally, 60% of respondents agreed children should generally not face trial and sentencing on the same basis as adults.“The youth criminal justice system is based on the principle youth are presumed to be less morally blameworthy than adults,” said Perceptions. “It acknowledges youth should be held accountable differently than adults given their lack of maturity and greater level of dependency.”“Women as well as younger respondents were consistently more likely than men and older respondents to agree,” said the report. “These results suggest there is public support for a different and separate legal system to govern criminal cases involving youth.”“Most respondents, 73%, reported youth should be sentenced to custody when they commit a violent offence or when they are repeat offenders,” said Perceptions. “A small percentage of respondents, 5%, said youth should never be sentenced to custody.”In Canada, police-reported delinquency rates have declined over the past 20 years.According to the 2022 department of public safety report Statistical Snapshot of Youth at Risk and Youth Offending in Canada, the most common youth crimes included petty theft, mischief and common assault.“There is no single source of information to determine the number of youths who commit crimes in Canada,” said Snapshot. “Estimates can be obtained using various methods, e.g. self-reports, official records of convictions, charges or victimization surveys, each providing a slightly different picture of the phenomenon.”According to a Statistics Canada report Police-Reported Crime Statistics in Canada on August 27, there were only 932 charges filed under the Youth Criminal Justice Act last year, compared to 1,035 charges in the previous year.
