Youths III Flashcards
What 2 things must the court have regard to in sentencing youths?
- Principal aim of the youth justice system (prevent offending by young people)
- Welfare of child/young person
Which court has the expertise in sentencing youths?
The youth court
What are the overarching guidelines in determining a youth’s sentence?
- Principal aim (prevent re-offending)
- Welfare
- Age of young person
- Seriousness of offence (culpability and harm)
- Likelihood of further offences being committed and extent of their harm
What is the statutory requirement for any youths under 16 y/o?
That parents/guardians attend all stages of proceedings unless deemed unreasonable
When does the court have a duty to impose a parenting order?
When it would be desirable in the interest of preventing the commission of further offences
There is a discretionary power to make these orders where young person is aged 16 or 17.
What happens where a parent breaches a parenting order?
Punishable by fine and CPS conducts proscution in magistrates’
What is the relevant age for the purpose of sentencing?
The age of the offender at date of conviction
What is a persistent offnder? What is the significance of being one?
- No definition but would class as PO if 3 findings of guilt in past 12 months for imprisonable offences of a comparable nature / series of separate, comparable offences over short space of time
- Some sentences can only be imposed for persistent offendrs
What are the 3 circumstances in which the youth court (or magistrates’ if appearing there) can commit to Crown for sentencing?
- Youth convicted of grave crime and court considers that Crown should have power to deal with offender
- Commital for sentence of dangerous young offenders
- Commital for sentence for related offences
Where a youth has been committed to Crown, how can the Crown deal with the youth?
Any way in which it could deal with youth if they had just been convicted of offence on indictment before the court
What 3 sentences only apply to youths?
- Detention/training orders
- Referral orders
- Youth rehabilitation orders
There are certain sentences which are only available to youths of a certain age
Are all youth sentences available to each court?
No - hence why magistrates’ should remit sentence of youth to youth court unless powers appropriate
There is an individualistic approach to youth sentencing - sentences are flexible enough to meet the differing needs of the youths who appear in the youth court.
What are the 5 types of youth sentence?
- Absolute/conditional discharge (for least serious offences)
- Referral order
- Fines
- Youth rehabilitation orders (YRO) - like community orders
- Detention and training orders (DTO) - like custodial sentences
What are the minimum and maximum lengths of YROs and referral orders?
- YROs = no statutory min - max 36 months
- Referral orders = min 3 months - max 12 months (length depends on seriousness)
What are the thresholds for YROs (youth rehabilitation orders) and DTOs (detention and training orders)?
- YRO = offence must be serious enough to impose YRO
- DTO = only if statutory threshold passed
Must an offence be imprisonable for it to be ‘serious enough’ to pass a YRO?
No
What 2 YROs are only available to 16-17 year olds (on date of conviction)?
I.e. are that age on date of conviction
- Unpaid wok requirement
- Residence requirement
What 2 YROs are only available to under-15 year olds who are deemed persistent offenders and are convicted for an imprisonable offence and the custody threhsold has been passed?
- Intensive supervision and surveillance
- Fostering requirement
What other YRO requirements are available for all ages?
- Activity/programme
- Electronic monitoring
- Mental health treatment
- Drug treatment
- Attendance centre
- Curfew
- Exclusion/supervision
What are the 4 options available to the court when a YRO is breached?
- Take no action; allow order to continue in original form
- Impose fine up to £2,500 (and allow order to continue)
- Amend terms of order; or
- Revoke order and re-sentence
What two things does a referral order require offender to do?
- Attend meetings of youth offender panel established by youth offending team; and
- Comply with a programme of behaviour for certain period agreed between offender and panel
Essentially a form of contract
What happens when a referral order is ‘spent’ on discharge?
Youth is left with clean slate
What are the 2 conditions which, if both satisfied, will mean a referral order is mandatory? In what two circumstances will the conditions not apply?
- Young offender has not previously been convicted of offence; and
- Young offender pleads guilty to imprisonable offence and any other offence being dealt with by court at same time (connected offences)
Conditions will not apply if sentence fixed by law / court proposes to impose custodial sentenece, hospital order or discharge
What are the 2 conditions which, if one is satisfied, will mean a referral order is discretionary? In what four circumstances can the order not be given?
- On second/later conviction; and/or
- Young offender pleads guilty to offence/connected offence being dealt with by court
Cannot be given where sentence fixed by law, court feels discharge is justified, court proposes to make hospital order or court considers custody only correct disposal
What will happen where a young offender breaches a referral order or is convicted of another offence while subject to a referral order?
May be referred back to youth court which may revoke the referral order and deal with youth in any manner in which he could have been for that offence (or order young offender to pay fine/extend length of contract period)
What is the only custodial sentence available to the youth court?
A DTO (detention and training order)
When should it be used (generally and threshold)?
Used as last resort and only where offence is so serious that neither fine alone nor community sentence can be justified
What is the only time a DTO can apply?
When a youth has been convicted of an offence which is punishable with imprisonment in case of adult
Can DTOs be imposed by Youth Court on offenders aged 10-11 or 12-14?
- 10-11 = no
- 12-14 = only if they are a persistent offender
What is the minimum and maximum length of a DTO? What about consecutive DTOs? What must the length be?
- Min 4 months - max 24 months
- Consecutive DTOs can be imposed up to aggregate of 24 months
- Length must be shortest possible in proportion to seriousness of offence
DTO may only be 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 18 or 24 months long
What is the outcome in cases that warrant a DTO of less than 4 months?
Must result in non-custodial sentence
Can a DTO only be imposed by Youth?
No - also Crown
What should the court take into account when determining DTO?
Circumstances, age, maturity of youth
When considering the relevant offence guideline, the court may feel it appropriate to apply a sentence broadly within the region of half to two thirds of the adult sentence for those aged 15–17 and allow a greater reduction for those aged under 15. This is only a rough guide.
How are the two halves of a DTO split?
- First half = spent in secure youth detention
- Second half = spent in community under supervision overseen by YOT (court not involved in deciding what supervision must entail)
What are the two community alternatives to custody? What are the 3 requirements which must be satisfied to impose these?
- Intensive supervision and surveillance requirement / fostering requirement
- 1) Offence must be punishable by imprisonment, 2) offence must cross custody threshold and 3) a custodial sentence must be merited before
When can intensive supervision and surveillance requirement and a fostering requirement be imposed for youths below 15?
Only if they are persistent offenders
What 2 requirements must be fulfilled before a youth be sentenced by Crown to long-term detention?
Long-term detention is not the only form of detention for more than 2 years
- Found guilty of grave crime and
- Neither a community order nor DTO is suitable
It is possible that, following a guilty plea, a two year detention order may be appropriate as opposed to a sentence of long term detention to account for the reduction
CROWN ONLY
If a youth is found to be dangerous, what can they be sentenced to?
Extended detention or detention for life
CROWN ONLY
What is ‘detention at his majesty’s pleasure’? What is the starting point?
The mandatory setence for any youth found guilty of committing murder - starting point is 12 years
What is the usual custodial sentence for those aged between 18 and 21?
Detention in a young offenders insitution
Summary of sentences available
