Criminal Justice
The voices of young adult defendants
The Centre for Justice Innovation piloted a procedural fairness approach with young adult offenders in Magistrates’ Courts.
27th November 2018
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Tags are keywords. I put tags on every post to help you find the content you want. Tags may be people (Dominic Raab, say), organisations (The Howard League, PRT), themes (women offenders, homelessness) or specific items (heroin, racial disparity, ROTL). If you’re looking to research a particular issue, they can be invaluable.
The Centre for Justice Innovation piloted a procedural fairness approach with young adult offenders in Magistrates’ Courts.
Howard League report recommends that principles should consider the relationship between immaturity and blameworthiness, capacity to change, and the impact of race and histories of care.
While the 18-25 age group is one that offends the most, young adults have the greatest potential to make the transition to a crime-free adulthood while the brain is still developing.
A new court model from Centre for Justice Innovation & T2A draws upon research that has shown young adults’ brain development and maturity makes them a group distinct from both children and from fully mature adults.
Revolving Doors Agency & Transition 2 Adulthood Alliance spotlight innovative practice with young adult offenders driven and led by Police and Crime Commissioners.
The sentencing process presents an opportunity to apply the wealth of expertise concerning the development of young adults to achieve better outcomes.
Justice Committee: Dealing effectively with young adults while the brain is still developing is crucial for successful transitions to a crime-free adulthood
One of the strongest elements of this report is that it suggests a straightforward approach for piloting a young adults court which would not necessarily require a great need of financial investment.
Perhaps the main challenge for probation staff working with young adult offenders in the new CRCs will be to have sufficient time to develop a trusting relationship which underpins the best probation practice.
Professor McGuire makes it clear that conclusions can only be tentative given the small number of studies reviewed (there are many more research studies aimed at juvenile offenders, but far fewer targeted at the young adult age group). Nevertheless, there are some helpful critical success factors upon which to build more effective approaches:
This is a guest blog by Bob Neill MP, Chair of the Justice Select Committee (you can follow the work of the committee via its
