CHAPTER 8: FIRST CONTACT: POLICE AND DIVERSIONARY
MEASURES
Diversion: a practice based on a philosophy that justice rehabilitation and reintegration are better
served by keeping most people out of the formal justice system
- The YCJA encouraged police to consider issuing a warning for first-time offenders involved
in non-violent offences
- Not so much in YOA
Police contact and decision-making:
- majority of youth crimes come from complaints and police officers have a considerable
amount of power in making decisions about how to proceed
- YCJA requires police to consider whether they should give a warning depending on the crime
- British and Canadian studies of policing indicate that police surveillance of you is
disproportionately high compared to surveillance of adults
- Most criminal cases involving young offenders are handled informally
-
Actions that a police officer can choose from:
1. Issue a warning to the offender and then let them go
2. Arrest and hold the youth in police custody
3. Take to police stations for questioning before releasing
4. Write up a report on the young person before release
5. Charge the young person
6. Release the young person with conditions
7. In some provinces refer the individual to a diversionary program
8. Hold them in detention for further judicial proceedings
Extralegal factors: factors affecting criminal or youth justice processing that are outside the
jurisdiction
- Why are some youths charged and others aren’t
a) Race:
- An example of an extralegal factor
- Minority youth are more likely to be arrested by police and to have a record
- Police are more likely to keep records on minority youth
- Racial bias in the justice system is an important to factor in explaining differences in police
arrest and charging
b) Demeanour and race:
- A youth's appearance and attitude and how that you behave with the police officer will
influence how the officer will use their discretion
- Youth who fit the image of a delinquent is more likely to be arrested
- The significance of demeanour depends on the sourness of the offence
- African Americans expect the worst from police officers so they are more likely to be defiant,
while police are more likely to expect African American youth as likely behave in a defiant
manner
- 71% of Canadian police agree on the importance of demeanour
Legal factors:
MEASURES
Diversion: a practice based on a philosophy that justice rehabilitation and reintegration are better
served by keeping most people out of the formal justice system
- The YCJA encouraged police to consider issuing a warning for first-time offenders involved
in non-violent offences
- Not so much in YOA
Police contact and decision-making:
- majority of youth crimes come from complaints and police officers have a considerable
amount of power in making decisions about how to proceed
- YCJA requires police to consider whether they should give a warning depending on the crime
- British and Canadian studies of policing indicate that police surveillance of you is
disproportionately high compared to surveillance of adults
- Most criminal cases involving young offenders are handled informally
-
Actions that a police officer can choose from:
1. Issue a warning to the offender and then let them go
2. Arrest and hold the youth in police custody
3. Take to police stations for questioning before releasing
4. Write up a report on the young person before release
5. Charge the young person
6. Release the young person with conditions
7. In some provinces refer the individual to a diversionary program
8. Hold them in detention for further judicial proceedings
Extralegal factors: factors affecting criminal or youth justice processing that are outside the
jurisdiction
- Why are some youths charged and others aren’t
a) Race:
- An example of an extralegal factor
- Minority youth are more likely to be arrested by police and to have a record
- Police are more likely to keep records on minority youth
- Racial bias in the justice system is an important to factor in explaining differences in police
arrest and charging
b) Demeanour and race:
- A youth's appearance and attitude and how that you behave with the police officer will
influence how the officer will use their discretion
- Youth who fit the image of a delinquent is more likely to be arrested
- The significance of demeanour depends on the sourness of the offence
- African Americans expect the worst from police officers so they are more likely to be defiant,
while police are more likely to expect African American youth as likely behave in a defiant
manner
- 71% of Canadian police agree on the importance of demeanour
Legal factors:
