Increasing jail terms for young offenders will have no impact on their behaviour and will likely make it more difficult to re-integrate them into society, a specialist in youth crime told all-party House of Commons justice and human rights committee Tuesday.
"Young people committing offences are not considering the long-term consequences," said Queen's University professor Nicholas Bala, who is critical of proposals in the Conservative government's proposed omnibus crime legislation that would provide for longer sentences and more pre-trial custody for certain crimes.
The committee also heard from Line Lacasse, a Laval mother whose son was stabbed to death by a gang of young thugs in 2004.
"They were 10 young people with no respect for human life," she said. "If your child was killed in this way you would vote for this bill. We have a life sentence when we lose a loved one. There are no serious consequences for these crimes."
When the Conservatives first introduced Bill C4 it was named after Lacasse's son Sébastien who was chased, beaten and stabbed to death.
The leader of the group, who was 17 at the time of the killing, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and was sentenced as an adult.
The bill is also named to honour the work of Luc and Line Lacasse, who have become advocates of victim's rights. They have organized an annual walk in their hometown to raise awareness about youth violence.
Bala told the committee the experience in many countries, especially the United States, shows that more punitive laws, including sentencing young people as adults, is expensive and ineffective, said Bala, one of Canada's foremost experts in youth crime.
"This is a step on the wrong direction," he told MPs. "If young people were adults it might have an effect but they aren't. It will mean an increase in costs and delays without any increase in public safety."
In response to questions from committee members about new provisions in the "Safe Streets and Communities Bill" that would allow courts increased leeway in making the names of young offenders public, Bala said there is research from several countries, including the United States, showing publicizing names often hurts offender's families more than the offender.
"A young person will pick up a newspaper and say 'See, I'm a tough guy.' A politician might be embarrassed being identified with a crime but young people are not. It sounds like a good idea to publish names but it doesn't make society safer."
Origin
Source: Ottawa Citizen
"Young people committing offences are not considering the long-term consequences," said Queen's University professor Nicholas Bala, who is critical of proposals in the Conservative government's proposed omnibus crime legislation that would provide for longer sentences and more pre-trial custody for certain crimes.
The committee also heard from Line Lacasse, a Laval mother whose son was stabbed to death by a gang of young thugs in 2004.
"They were 10 young people with no respect for human life," she said. "If your child was killed in this way you would vote for this bill. We have a life sentence when we lose a loved one. There are no serious consequences for these crimes."
When the Conservatives first introduced Bill C4 it was named after Lacasse's son Sébastien who was chased, beaten and stabbed to death.
The leader of the group, who was 17 at the time of the killing, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and was sentenced as an adult.
The bill is also named to honour the work of Luc and Line Lacasse, who have become advocates of victim's rights. They have organized an annual walk in their hometown to raise awareness about youth violence.
Bala told the committee the experience in many countries, especially the United States, shows that more punitive laws, including sentencing young people as adults, is expensive and ineffective, said Bala, one of Canada's foremost experts in youth crime.
"This is a step on the wrong direction," he told MPs. "If young people were adults it might have an effect but they aren't. It will mean an increase in costs and delays without any increase in public safety."
In response to questions from committee members about new provisions in the "Safe Streets and Communities Bill" that would allow courts increased leeway in making the names of young offenders public, Bala said there is research from several countries, including the United States, showing publicizing names often hurts offender's families more than the offender.
"A young person will pick up a newspaper and say 'See, I'm a tough guy.' A politician might be embarrassed being identified with a crime but young people are not. It sounds like a good idea to publish names but it doesn't make society safer."
Origin
Source: Ottawa Citizen
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