Southern Melbourne Area Youth Justice
Program
Christine Karras
Melissa Mackie
Dandenong Youth Justice – 8765-5444
18 October 2013
Objectives
• Youth Justice objectives are to:
• where appropriate, support diversion of young people charged with an
offence from the criminal justice system
• minimise the likelihood of reoffending and further progression into the
criminal justice system through supervision that challenges
offending behaviours and related attitudes and promotes pro-social
behaviours
• work with other services to strengthen community-based options for
young people enabling an integrated approach to the provision of
support that extends beyond the court order
• engender public support and confidence in the Youth Justice service.
Philosophy underpinning
practice
• Custody is last resort
• Evidence based practice
• Community integration
Matters taken into account
when sentencing
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The need to strengthen & preserve the relationship between the child & the
family;
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The desirability of allowing the child to live at home;
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The desirability of allowing the education, training or employment to continue
without interruption;
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The need to minimise the stigma to the child resulting from a court
determination;
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The suitability of the sentence of the child;
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If appropriate, the need to ensure that the child is aware that they must bear
a responsibility for any action against the law;
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The need to protect the community.
Hierarchy of Children’s Court
Sentences
• Non-Supervisory Orders
Fines
Good Behaviour Bond
Accountable Undertaking
Undertaking
Dismiss Charge
• Supervisory Order
*Intensive Bail Supervision
*Supervised Deferral of Sentence
Probation Order (without conviction)
Youth Supervision Order (with or without conviction)
Youth Attendance Order (with conviction)
Youth Justice Centre Order (with conviction)
Youth Parole Order (with conviction)
‘Dual track’ system
• Section 32 of the Sentencing Act 1991 legislates that
some 18 to 20 year olds convicted of serious offences
can be detained in a youth justice centre instead of
an adult prison if the court believes the young person
has reasonable prospects for rehabilitation, or is
particularly impressionable, immature or likely
to be subjected to undesirable influences in an
adult prison. This is commonly referred to as the
'dual track' system.
Youth Justice Custodial Services
• Responsible for the operation and management of
youth justice centres:
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Parkville Youth Justice Precinct
-young women aged 10-21
-young men sentenced in the Children’s Court
Malmsbury Youth Justice Centre
-young men sentenced in the Magistrates’, County
or Supreme Courts.
The Youth Parole Board
• The Youth Parole and Youth Residential Boards are
independent statutory bodies created under sections
442 and 431 respectively of the Children, Youth and
Families Act 2005 (Vic).
• The Youth Parole and Youth Residential Boards
exercise jurisdiction over all young people sentenced
by a court to a period of detention in a youth justice
centre (15-20 years) or youth residential centre (1014 years) and over young people transferred by the
Adult Parole Board from imprisonment in an adult
prison to serve their sentence in a youth justice
custodial centre.
Board membership
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ChairpersonHis Honour Judge Michael
Bourke
Alternate ChairpersonHis Honour Judge Ross Howie
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Community membersDeborah Bryant
Alternate Community memberYvonne Luke
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Helen Dimopoulos
Carmel Guerra
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Departmental memberVictor Gordon
Alternate Departmental
Member Kathryn Lamb
Factors influencing the Board’s
decision making
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interests of/risk to the community
capacity for parole to assist the young person’s rehabilitation
intentions and comments of the sentencing authority
the nature and circumstances of the offences
young person’s criminal history
previous community based dispositions and compliance
family and community support networks
release plans
reports, assessments and recommendations made by a variety
of professionals, including medical practitioners, psychologists,
psychiatrists, custodial staff, parole officers and support
agencies
• submissions made by the young person, victims, the young
person’s family, friends and potential employers.
Youth Parole
• Parole provides an opportunity for young people to serve part of
their custodial sentence in the community. This enables
reintegration of the client back into the community in a planned
way with support and supervision from regional youth justice.
• The client remains under the jurisdiction and monitoring of the
Boards until the completion of their parole.
• The timelines for consideration of parole is a decision made by
the Boards when sentenced to YRC or YJC.
Common referrals
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Alcohol & Other Services (AO&D)
Mental Health
Counselling
General health
Recreation
Employment and Education
Literacy & Numeracy
Offence Specific, ie MVO, MAPPS, Violence Prevention
Youth Justice Community Support Service
Housing
Family/interpersonal counselling
L2P
Cultural support, ie KISP, KYJ & Cultural Connections
A day in the life of a Youth Justice worker
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On any given day, as a YJ worker you might…..
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Support a young person at Court.
Attend a care team meeting.
Write case notes.
Write a court report.
Visit and assess proposed accommodation.
Support/debrief a colleague.
Have supervision with a young person.
Advocate for a young person to be accepted into a program.
Try and locate a young person whose whereabouts is unknown.
Have supervision with their supervisor.
Visit a young person in custody, ie in a youth justice centre, in a remand facility or an adult
prison.
Take a young person to have their mental health assessed.
Build rapport with a young person by participating in a recreational activity.
Mediate between a young person and their parent.
Prosecute the breach of a young person’s YJ Order in court.
Assist young person with their independent living skills.
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