NCJ Number
207125
Journal
Law & Policy Volume: 26 Issue: 3 & 4 Dated: July & October 2004 Pages: 309-327
Date Published
July 2004
Length
19 pages
Annotation
This article compares the Scottish youth justice system, the French youth justice system, and the youth justice system in England and Wales in light of the recommendation that the youth justice system in England and Wales should be restructured under a “unified” intervention model.
Abstract
In 2002, the Institute of Public Policy Research (IPPR) published a report recommending that the juvenile justice system in England and Wales be restructured based on the Scottish Reporter system, which espouses a unified intervention model. In order to examine the appropriateness of this recommendation, this article assesses the advantages and disadvantages of the Scottish juvenile justice system and compares it with the French youth justice system in terms of ideology and approach. The youth justice system in England and Wales is examined to determine whether an entire new approach to youth crime is appropriate and necessary, as per the IPPR recommendation. The Scottish and French youth justice systems contain an agency and a legislative framework within which to assess the type of intervention appropriate for youth involved in delinquency. Both of these systems also have the authority to require that the appropriate interventions be provided. The analysis of the youth justice systems in England and Wales reveals that this system also has the necessary legislative framework to accomplish the goals of the Scottish and French unified intervention systems. As such, a new legislative framework for juvenile justice in England and Wales is not warranted. Instead, the way in which resources are allocated for crime prevention should be reconsidered so that the justice system has the ability to intervene positively in the lives of youth involved with crime. Notes, references