17-year-olds to be moved to youth justice

The Palaszczuk Government will introduce legislation to Parliament next week to end the practice of treating 17-year-olds as adults in Queensland’s justice system.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said the move would tackle a number of complex issues that successive previous governments have been unwilling to address for more than two decades.

“For too long it’s been in the too-hard basket. Not anymore,” the Premier said.

“Next week, the Attorney will introduce legislation into the Parliament to right this wrong. Once the Bill has gone through Committee, and is then brought back for a vote later this year and passed, we aim to have all 17-year-olds removed from adult prisons within 12 months.

“The issues involved in treating 17-year-olds involved in serious and often violent crimes as young people in our youth justice system and not as adults are complex, which is why we must tackle them through a whole of government process.

“We can continue to ensure community safety for Queenslanders, while meeting the needs of vulnerable young people through the sort for programs and services that can only be delivered through the youth justice system.”

Attorney-General and Minister for Justice Yvette D’Ath said one of the most important issues to be considered in moving 17-year-olds into the youth justice system is the safety of younger children already in the system.

“Our two youth detention centres in Brisbane and Townsville house males and females, some as young as ten,” Mrs D’Ath said.

“Our commitment to transfer 17-year-olds, some charged with violent offences, from adult prisons to open campus centres housing much younger males and females, must ensure the safety and wellbeing of all children involved.

“That’s why we need to address the very high rates of young people who are on remand – in other words, only about one in five children in youth detention centres are there as a result of charges of which they’ve been convicted.

“The rest are still waiting to face court. We need to significantly reduce those remand numbers, both for the welfare of the young people involved and to accommodate all 17-year-olds in the youth justice system.”

There are about 50 17-year-olds in adult correctional facilities in Queensland.

There are currently about 150 young people accommodated in Queensland’s two youth detention centres.

There are also about 200 17-year-olds under Corrective Services supervision who would transfer to the youth justice system, with youth justice case workers assuming responsibility for their community-based orders.

Premier Palaszczuk said the decision to move 17-year-olds to youth justice would require a whole of government response.

“Tackling this problem won’t just involve Corrective Service and Justice, but Police, Education, Health, Housing, Communities and the Department Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Partnerships as a bare starting point,” she said.

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child considers a person as a child until the age of 18.

Police and Corrective Services Minister Bill Byrne said Queensland Corrective Services would implement the transition of 17-year-olds from adult prisons to youth detention.

Youth Justice Review

The Government has also announced the two independent experts who will conduct the review into the practices, operation and oversight of Queensland’s Youth Detention Centres. The Attorney-General announced the independent review last month.

Professor Megan Davis is the Chair and UN expert member on the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Peoples, a member of the NSW Sentencing Council and an Acting Commissioner of the NSW Land and Environment Court.

Kathryn McMillan QC is a Queensland barrister with nearly 30 years’ experience. She is a member of Dame Quentin Bryce’s Domestic and Family Violence Prevention Council, a member of the Child Death Case Review Panel.

Mrs D’Ath said the two reviewers brought a wealth of expertise across the breadth of issues relating to the administration of youth justice.

“I am very grateful Professor Davis and Ms McMillan QC have agreed to conduct this review,” Mrs D’Ath said.

“Their experience and insight is well suited to addressing the complex and sensitive nature of youth justice.

“This review will be given some powers under the Commission of Inquiry Act to ensure witnesses can be compelled and evidence can be protected.”

The review will look into allegations levelled against the staff of youth detentions centres by former detainees and former employees in the media last month, and also specific allegations raised this month about the treatment of a 17-year-old in an adult prison three years ago.

The review will also look at the practices, operation and oversight of Queensland’s Youth Detention Centres and report back by 30 November.

Youth Justice Review – terms of reference

(a) the operations of the Cleveland Youth Detention Centre and the Brisbane Youth Detention Centre with respect to the following matters—

(i) a review of the specific allegations of the mistreatment of young people made by former staff members and young people (formerly in youth detention in Queensland) in:

(A) the Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s 7:30 and Lateline programs broadcast on Thursday 18 August 2016; and

(B) other public commentary (including the report by Amnesty International) in relation to those allegations;

(ii) a review of the policies and practices currently operating within Queensland’s youth detention centres in relation to the use of force, separation, restraints, reporting, monitoring, and complaint and investigation mechanisms for alleged incidents;

(iii) a review of the effectiveness of existing oversight mechanisms which operate in respect of the allegations referred to in paragraph 3(a)(i);

(iv) with respect to incidents reported under any of the existing oversight mechanisms referred to in paragraph 3(a)(iii) since 1 January 2011 (reported incidents), a review of any specific allegations that the reported incidents were not appropriately investigated or that any action taken as a result of the investigation failed to address the mistreatment of young people in detention in Queensland;

(v) a review of the effectiveness of current programs and services delivered in Queensland’s youth detention centres that relate to assisting young people to address the causational issues behind their offending behaviour; and

(vi) a review of the current cultural programs and services delivered in Queensland’s youth detention centres and their effectiveness in addressing the specific needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people in youth detention; and

(b) the operations of Queensland prisons with respect to the following matters—

(i) a review of the specific allegations of the mistreatment of a 17-year-old prisoner in the Brisbane Correctional Centre made in a report in The Courier-Mail on 29 August 2016; and

(ii) a review of the policies and practices currently operating for 17-year–old prisoners within prisons in relation to the use of force, separation, restraints, reporting, monitoring, and complaint and investigation mechanisms for alleged incidents.