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Review of the Juvenile Justice Act 1992

On 19 May 2009, Karen Struthers MP, Minister for Community Services and Housing and Minister for Women, introduced the Juvenile Justice and Other Acts Amendment Bill 2009 into the Queensland Parliament. The Bill was passed on 2 September 2009 and received Royal Assent on 17 September 2009.

The Juvenile Justice and Other Acts Amendment Act 2009 has been designed to ensure that Queensland has a robust youth justice system that is based on evidence and community feedback, will support victims of crime, meet community expectations of the justice system, and address the underlying causes of crime.

A summary of the amendments is provided below; however, the Bill and formal Explanatory Notes can be accessed at www.legislation.qld.gov.au/Bill_Pages/Bill_53_09.htm

On introducing the Bill, the Minister acknowledged that stakeholders hold a range of diverse and often opposing views about how best to respond to youth crime, acknowledging that this is a complex and challenging area that requires balanced, evidence based approaches and actions. In her speech, the Minister also thanked all those groups and individuals who took the opportunity to have their say on the Juvenile Justice Act.

The Minister's second reading speech on 19 May 2009 and the debate which took place on 1-2 September 2009 can be accessed at the Queensland Parliament website.

A period of implementation will now occur, prior to commencement of the Act. This will ensure that the courts, the department and other service providers have adequate time to prepare for implementation of the Act.

Main amendments contained in the Act

The changes set out in the Act will:

give courts specific powers to place curfews on juvenile offenders to reduce the chances of them re-offending and to ensure they are properly supervised;
widen court powers in relation to naming juvenile offenders, allowing orders to be issued allowing publication of identifying information if the court considers it to be in the interests of justice to do so;
increase the minimum mandatory detention period for young people convicted of multiple murders from 15 years to 20 years' imprisonment;
give police stronger powers to arrest and take to court young people who:
- do not comply with youth justice conferencing requirements; or
- contravene an agreement; or
- fail to attend a drug assessment session;

require courts to consider setting a date for the transfer of offenders from youth detention to adult prison when sentencing young offenders to be detained beyond the age of 18;
automatically prohibit the publication of information which identifies a child victim;
contribute to reducing remand levels by:
- requiring courts to consider the likely sentence when making bail decisions;
- clarifying that if a young person is remanded in detention because of a threat of harm to their safety, the threat must arise from the circumstances of the alleged offence (such as a threat of retribution from a victim or a co-accused);

update the name of the Juvenile Justice Act 1992 to the Youth Justice Act 1992; and
make minor amendments (eg to give victims the right to bring more than one support person with them to a formal youth justice conference) to improve the workability of the relevant Acts.

History of the review

A review of the Juvenile Justice Act 1992 (PDF 1.1 MB) commenced in May 2007. This review provided an opportunity to assess the legislation to ensure it is providing a best practice youth justice system that has the capacity to adequately respond to demands and challenges.

Issues Paper

Public consultation on the Issues Paper (PDF 622 kB) for the review was undertaken during 2007. This paper outlined terms of reference for the review, raised specific questions on prominent youth justice issues and invited submissions from interested individuals and organisations.

The department received a total of 174 submissions, with almost one-third of these from young people. Thanks are extended to people and organisations who submitted feedback and comments in response to the Issues Paper.

Consultation Report

A Consultation Report (PDF 657 kB) was released in early 2008. This report summarises feedback received in response to the Issues Paper.

Last reviewed: 19 October 2009