The Juvenile Justice System of QLD

Did you know?

• Inappropriately detaining young people in custody can lead to continuing problems for local communities. Research shows that the younger the person on trial is detained, the more likely they are to re-offend.
• A massive 74% of the young people in custody at Queensland Juvenile Detention centres on 30 June 2006 were on remand (being held in custody before they had been found guilty or before their sentence had been finalised). (1)
• QLD is the only state in Australia where 17 year old youths are trialled as adults. This goes against the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, which states that someone at the age of 17 is by definition still a child, and must be trialled as such. (2)
• Both physical and mental health of young offenders in juvenile detention centres is a commonplace issue. Research shows that physical and mental health in juvenile offenders is poorer than that of young people in general. Research found that young offenders in secure care, such as juvenile detention centres, are more likely to have poorer health because of issues such as frequent substance abuse, exposure to violence, hepatitis C infection and liver disease, sexual trauma and exposure to STD’s, and head injuries, as well as eating disorders and high levels of teen pregnancies. (3)
• Aboriginal and Torres-Strait offenders are considerably over-represented in Juvenile Detention Centres. (4)
• Most juvenile sex offenders present a low risk for repeating sexual crimes and a high risk for committing nonsexual crimes as adults. (5)

Why am I interested?

I am currently undertaking a Bachelor’s degree in Behavioural Studies so that I can become involved with the Social Work sector, working with young people especially. My interest in this area stems from growing up in a country town in which destructive and both physically and emotionally abusive households were commonplace, and suicide and depression, and self medication with drugs and alcohol were common responses to the situations of trauma and boredom that occurred. I have known a few of my friends to be imprisoned, however in my eyes they were deprived of a childhood in the first place, having simply repeated behaviour we grew up with.

This is why I am particularly passionate about the concept of young people and crime, especially young people in Juvenile Detention Centres, and the future implications this imprisonment holds for the individual in terms of social integration, health (mental and physical), and ability to simply enjoy life.

What am I doing?

Rather that waiting to finish my degree to make a difference in society, I began looking up information on programs, workshops and community projects that benefitted young people and their communities, many of which are participation as well as donation-based, so all they require is some of your time, and your compassion, patience and care for disadvantaged people.

Some of the steps I am taking in order to make a positive difference in the lives of young people in Juvenile Detention Centres include:

• Becoming involved with a local Maori group which helps to rehabilitate and encourage its young community members in Brisbane’s juvenile detention centres through traditional cultural practices such as dance, art and music.
• Signing up with the Youth Affairs Network QLD (http://www.yanq.org.au) to keep up-to-date with local projects to help young people, and also keep informed about workshops and training based on helping and understanding young people from different cultures and backgrounds, and from disadvantaged backgrounds.
• Researching papers to gain a better knowledge of the rights and services of young offenders, using resources such as the YANQ, UN convention Papers, and keeping informed with Australian and QLD legislations pertaining to young offenders.
• There are many voluntary programs to help young people in juvenile detention centres, such as voluntary visitor programs in which community members spend time with the young people in the detention centres, encouraging them with their individual interests, whether it be rap, indigenous dances, art, singing, etc. (6)
  

What else can we do?

The improvement of the lives of young people in the Juvenile Detention Centres largely depends on community input. This can include:

• Integrating programs into schools about addressing and dealing with antisocial and aggravated behaviours, such as workshops including overcoming adversity, building resilience, developing personal responsibility and leadership skill (http://www.enoughisenough.org.au)
• Volunteering your time to combat the reality of social isolation in youth prisons. This can include helping young people to express their feelings through art, dance and music, or simply having conversations with the young people about footy, local bands, or anything at all really (http://www.communityservices.qld.gov.au)
• Donate (time and/or funds) to organisations that facilitate the education and care of young people from disadvantaged backgrounds, both within and out of juvenile detention centres, to create a more supportive and caring network for young people (http://www.evolve.org.au/, http://www.yanq.org.au/, http://www.lifeline.org.au/)

 (1): http://www.yanq.org.au/content/view/1068/74/

(2): http://www.childjustice.org/html/resources_crc.htm

(3): http://www.adelaide.edu.au/news/news34041.html

(4): http://www.yanq.org.au/images/stories/Documents/cair_-11mar08.pdf

(5): A prospective longitudinal study of sexual recidivism among adolescent sex offenders. Nisbet, Ian A; Wilson, Peter H; Smallbone, Stephen W.
Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment v.16 no.3 Jun 2004: 223-234, tables