A group of prominent legal, human rights and social services organisations has urged Australia’s Attorneys-Generals to increase the age of criminal responsibility from 10 to 12.
The open letter, facilitated by Jesuit Social Services and signed by organisations including Australian Council of Social Service, Amnesty International, National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Legal Services and Oxfam Australia, has been released alongside a discussion paper Too much too young: Raise the age of criminal responsibility to 12.
“The minimum age of criminal responsibility across all Australian jurisdictions is 10, despite extensive scientific evidence the brains of children under 12 are not adequately developed for them to be criminally responsible, and often don’t adequately develop until they are 15,” says Jesuit Social Services Acting CEO Sally Parnell.
Australian’s minimum age is lower than countries including Canada, Japan, Germany, France and China. The United Nations has ruled that age 12 is the minimum for jurisdictions to hold children criminally responsible. This is currently breached by every Australian state and territory.
Andrew Jackomos, Victorian Commissioner for Aboriginal Children and Young People, says Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children comprise about 60 per cent of Australia’s youth detention population.
“Our Koori kids come into contact with the justice system younger and return more quickly. We must raise the age of criminal responsibility and reinvest our prison dollars in innovative community-led solutions that build the resilience of our Aboriginal children and their families and keep them connected to kin, culture and each other,” says Jackomos.
Parnell says that while the number of 10- and 11-year-old children involved in the justice system is small – less than 2 per cent of children under 18 in custody across Australia in 2013 to 2014 – it is a particularly vulnerable group.
“Often if children have serious behavioural issues it is an indicator there are complex problems – like family violence or sexual abuse – and they need protection, not punishment. Jesuit Social Services’ 2013 report Thinking Outside found that more than three quarters of children between 10 and 12 years old who had youth justice orders or had experienced remand in 2010 were known to child protection,” she says.
The discussion paper includes recommended reforms including further investments into pre-plea diversion programs and specialist Children’s Courts and a framework for diversion – steering children away from the justice system and towards positive connections with education, family and the community – to be legislated in all jurisdictions. [Jesuit Social Services]
Read JSS’ discussion paper: Too much too young: Raise the age of criminal responsibility to 12.
For more information, contact Kathryn Kernohan at kathryn.kernohan@jss.org.au