NCJ Number
140739
Date Published
1991
Length
8 pages
Annotation
Changes incorporated in England's Criminal Justice Act of 1991 affect juvenile and young adult offenders between 10 and 21 years of age.
Abstract
The Act introduces a new framework for custodial sentencing that applies to all cases, including detention under Section 53 of the Children and Young Persons Act of 1933 (except where the penalty is fixed by law, i.e., murder cases). When a court considers a custodial sentence, it is required to form an opinion on various matters, such as offense seriousness, public protection, and sentence length. Further, the Act requires the courts to avoid discrimination against any person on the grounds of race or sex. The Act abolishes the sentence of detention in young offender institutions for 14-year-old males. Minimum sentence length in young offender institutions is increased to 2 months for offenders under 18 years. There is a 12-month maximum for juveniles, and this limit is extended to 17-year-olds. Community sentences may involve one or more of the following orders: probation, community service, combination, curfew, supervision, and/or attendance center order. The Act renames the juvenile court the youth court, introduces substantial changes to the arrangements for remanding juvenile offenders, and contains provisions designed to reinforce parental responsibility for young offenders. 3 references