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Sly’s seven-point plan to break the youth crime cycle

31 0
09.07.2024

We love making simple stuff complex and ignoring the obvious. If we see something deeper, then we must be really clever. Right?

Take the justice system. It has two core duties. To provide fairness for all and to protect us from criminals.

Police Minister Anthony Carbines.Credit: Eddie Jim

In the area of youth crime, there is a system that has largely worked over the years. Give young offenders multiple exit routes from a life in crime, with jail the last resort, because once in custody, they tend to return three times.

But that system no longer works because there is a dangerous number of teenage offenders who missed all the exit points and jumped straight on the freeway to serious crime.

Attorney-General Jaclyn Symes and Police Minister Anthony Carbines will meet Victoria Police, legal and youth experts for a briefing over coming days. One would hope they have been receiving fresh information on a weekly basis.

This is a step forward, but nowhere near bold enough.

A fatal crash involving a stolen car and teenage suspects.Credit: Nine News

Way back in February, the sensible police Deputy Commissioner Ross Guenther called for a justice summit where all options could be discussed as the system was no longer fit for purpose.

While the........

© The Age


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