chapter two Flashcards
chapter two: creating a juvenile justice system: then and now
After reading this chapter on the origin, development, and reform of the Canadian juvenile justice system over the past one hundred years, students will:
1. Know the history of the Canadian juvenile justice system from its origins in the 19th century to the present.
2. Be able to situate opposition to and reform of the Youth Criminal Justice Act (YCJA) in a historical context.
3. Appreciate details, changes, and implications of the principles underlying the youth justice system under the Juvenile Delinquents Act (JDA), the Young Offenders Act (YOA), and the YCJA.
4. Be familiar with the juvenile justice law reform process from the JDA to the YCJA.
5. Understand current issues surrounding the YCJA and events leading to recent reforms.
(introduction)
according to some scholars, the juvenile justice system was created as a response to what?
According to some scholars, the juvenile justice system was created as a response to problems generated by an emerging system of capitalism that served to undermine traditional family supports.
two resulting problems were growing num- bers of poor children on the streets and higher levels of street crime committed by young people
what is child savers
child savers: A term used to refer to 19th-century North American middle-class reformers who were instrumental in the creation of a separate system of justice for juveniles.
According to other scholars, the juvenile justice system was the creation of Victorian reformers, or child savers (Platt, 1969a), who believed that delinquency was the product of bad environments and that the state should act like a parent to “save” children from these environments, even if that meant removing them from their parents’ homes and placing them in an institution
(the canadian juvenile justice system)
officialy created in 1908 through the passage of the Juvenile Delinquent Act
, it is two men who are credited by historians with creating the juvenile justice system— J.J. Kelso and W.L. Scott. Kelso (1907a, 1907b) was a Toronto newspaper reporter who, through his concern about the plight of poor children in the city, became a driving force behind the establishment of the Toronto Humane Society and the Children’s Fresh Air Fund.
(JDA: philosophy and definitions)
The JDA created a what based juvemile justice system?
A model of juvenile justice based on a rehabilitative philosophy.
the main philosophy came from what
The main philosophy underlying the legislation, the justice system it created, and the decision making of justice personnel who implemented the act, came from the doctrine of parens patriae, meaning “parent of the country
what is parens patriae
A doctrine based on English common law that gives the state the power to take on a guardian or parenting role for children.
- By the 18th century, parens patriae had been expanded to include a “best interest” principle as a means of actively promoting the well-being of a child or young perso
- y the 19th century, the doctrine had extended beyond the monarch to the state and to children without property who were orphaned or neglected by parents or guardians. The numerous acts of legislation passed in the 19th century to protect young people in need (see, for example, Box 2.1 on page 36) were supported and reinforced by the principle of parens patriae. Thus, a doctrine that began as “the King’s prerogative” had by the 19th century become “legitimized in common and
how did JDA dedine delinquency
The JDA defined delin- quency as the violation by young persons (the age varied by province) of any federal, provincial, or municipal law for which a fine or imprisonment was the penalty, or the commission of any other act that would make the young person liable to be com- mitted to an industrial school or reformatory.
JDA: the system
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indictable
In the Canadian Criminal Code, refers to offences that are of a serious nature; the maximum sentence is never less than two years.
The JDA gave the courts extensive powers. Cases were to be handled summarily. If an offence was indictable, it was up to the court to decide if the youth would be tried in an adult court.
more like hearings than trials, juvenile cases were conducted privately, and notices of delinquency hearings were sent to parents or guardians. Separate detention and jail facilities were mandated for delinquents. In addition, the JDA provided for a wide range of sentences or dispositions.
Within the broad require- ment to act in “the child’s own good and the best interests of the community,” the court could do what?
the court could adjourn the hearing, impose a fine for as much as $10, place the child in a foster home or in the care of a Children’s Aid Society, impose a probationary sentence, or send the child to an industrial school or reformatory.
probation
A sentence of the court
that involves supervision
in the community and set conditions that must be adhered to if the person is to remain in the community.
what was a central element of the juvenile court?
Probation was a central element of the juvenile court, with the probation officer playing a key role. The court could place a child in the custody of a probation officer as a form of sentence.
job of probation officers /
The JDA required probation officers to conduct investigations for the court, to assist and direct the court, and to represent the interests of the child in the court
The probation officer was also responsible for supervising children sentenced to a period of probation, and W.L. Scott, the author of the JDA, envisioned this as probation’s most important func- tion
what’s the probation officers most important function?
The probation officer was also responsible for supervising children sentenced to a period of probation, and W.L. Scott, the author of the JDA, envisioned this as probation’s most important func- tion
Scott argued that the probation officer’s object was to work to reform the child and “the whole family” and that this could be achieved only through working with the child in the home, school, and workplace.
