Young_Offenders_Act

Young Offenders Act ABOUT THE YOA • The Young Offenders Act was proclaimed into law in Canada on April 2, 1984. It replaced the Juvenile Delinquents Act, which had been in place for the previous 75 years. The YOA brought about significant changes from that previous legislation. Many were considered controversial right from the beginning and the critics started complaining even before it was officially proclaimed. One group thought that it was too harsh and created a new "Criminal Code for Kids". Others said it was too lenient and allowed young people to avoid responsibility for their actions. Little has changed in that regard, despite amendments to the YOA over the past 15 years. The criticism continues from both sides with many looking back to the time of the Juvenile Delinquents Act. In this web page, I propose to examine that earlier Act, and then go on to discuss various aspects of the YOA. Needless to say, emphasis will be placed on those areas that have generated criticism or controversy. Comments will also be made about the new Youth Criminal Justice Act, which was recently passed by the Canadian Parliament but has yet to be proclaimed in force. JUVENILE DELIQUENT’S ACT • The JDA was a mixture young, person, offence, court, rights, been, youth, school, record, order, judge, students, must, act, years, under, records, police, might, adult, right, probation, people, guilty, discharge, work, time, statement, sentence, rules, privacy, pay, one