Toronto Criminal Lawyer (Specialist)

Adam Weisberg 

Youth Criminal Justice Act - Defending Young Persons

Who is governed by the Youth Criminal Justice Act

A person that is under the age of eighteen at the time of their purported crime will be governed by the Youth Criminal Justice Act.

What is Special about the Youth Criminal Justice Act

One of the main differences between defending young individuals in Youth Court and adults in adult criminal court is that proceedings in youth court are not dictated by the Criminal Code. They are instead governed by the Youth Criminal Justice Act.  The Youth Criminal Justice Act is not a diversified collection of offences, nor is it a myriad of discreet procedural rules.  

The Youth Criminal Justice Act is structured in a way that follows the chronology of a young individual's interaction with the criminal justice system from their initial contact with the police officer to their journey through the system. The Youth Criminal Justice Act also restricts the parameters for retention of a young person's records after the conclusion of their matter. 

The Youth Criminal Justice Act is guided by the following three principles: 1) prevent crime by addressing the circumstances underlying a young persons offending behaviour; 2) rehabilitate young persons that commit offences and reintegrate them into society; and 3) ensure that young person are subject to meaningful consequences for their offences. 

There are procedural and substantive differences in dealing with a Youth matter that a criminal lawyer must be aware of when handling a young person's criminal case.  It is my opinion that when dealing with young people our law is more focused on rehabilitation and reintegration into society than when dealing with adults.  The ideology being this differentiation in treatment is that there is still hope for young persons even if they are involved in serious criminality.

The law underlying bail and sentencing for youth matters differs in substantive ways to adult criminal law.  The criminal lawyer will have to be aware of the specific provisions dealing with youth proceedings in order to properly represent a young person in a youth proceeding.

Examples of Differences between Youths and Adults

At the investigative stage, young people are entitled to greater protections than adults.  For example the Youth Criminal Justice Act requires the use of statutorily proscribed warnings, cautions, and enhanced procedural protections (for example being allowed to have a parent or lawyer present while being interviewed by the police as a suspect) prior to police being able to elicit admissible statements. 

Canadian law also understands the attention span of young people and their rapid changes in development.  This reasoning is why youth cases are to proceed throughout court in a timely fashion while being entitled to the least intrusive interventions. Young persons are to be treated with privacy and special treatment of their youth records.

Sentencing

The public perception is that youths are given an easier time when being punished.  The law in Canada does lean towards finding alternatives to incarceration for young people, however, for serious offences, youths may in certain circumstances attract adult sentences.

If you or a family member has been charged with an offence that occurred while that person was under the age of eighteen call Adam Weisberg at 416.603.3344.

 Back to Home Page