Youths Flashcards
When should a person not be an appropriate adult?
- Suspected of involvement in the offence;
- Victim;
- Witness;
- Involved in investigation;
- Received admissions prior to attending as AA.
When can a youth be interviewed in the absence of an AA?
Where the interview is authorised by a superintendent or above, or believed that delay will have consequences and satisfied that the youth’s physical or mental state would not be harmed.
Youths’ sentences: non-custodial (overview)
- Parenting order
- Rehabilitation order
- Referral order
Youths’ sentences” custodial (overview)
- Detention and Training Order
- Long-term detention
- Dangerous offenders
- Detention at her majesty’s pleasure
- Detention at A Young Offenders Institution.
Parenting order
For anyone under the age of 16 there is a statutory requirement for a parent to attend all stages of proceedings unless deemed unreasonable.
The court has a duty to make an order if desirable to prevent further offences.
Discretionary where Y 16-18. Breaches punishable by fine.
Rehabilitation Orders
Requires offender to attend meetings of a youth offender panel and comply with a course of behaviour. Minimum term of 3 months and maximum 12 months.
When is a referral order mandatory?
Offender not previously convicted and pleads guilty to an imprisonable offence (and any other offence being dealt with by the court at the same time).
When is a referral order discretionary?
- Second/later conviction;
- Y pleads guilty to offence or connected offence dealt with by the court.
- Offences need not be imprisonable.
Consequences of breaching a referral order
The court may:
- Take no action
- Impose a fine
- Amend terms of the order
- Revoke order and resentence youth.
When is a rehabilitation order used?
Where the offence is serious enough (need not be imprisonable). Possible requirements include supervision, work, prohibited activities, electronic monitoring, fostering.
When can fostering and intense supervision and surveillance be imposed as part of a rehabilitation order?
Where the offence is imprisonable and the custody threshold has been passed.
When is a detention and training order used?
Used as a last resort where the offence is “so serious” that a community sentence or a fine cannot be justified. Characteristics:
- Only custodial sentence that can be imposed by the YC.
- Minimum term of 4 months and maximum 2 years.
- A court might roughly sentence 2/3 of an adult sentence.
- First half spent in a secure youth detention centre and other half under community service.
- If it would be less than 4 months, it MUST result in a non-custodial sentence.
When is long-term detention used?
Used where a youth is found guilty of a grave crime and neither a community order or DTO is suitable. Characteristics:
- Can only be imposed by a CC.
- MC can refer to CC for sentencing.
When is detention at HMP used?
Mandatory for any youth convicted of murder. Starting term of 12 years.
When is detention at a youth offenders institution necessary?
Usual custodial sentence for 18-21.
