Passed in 1908, the Juvenile Delinquents Act was the first Canadian law to recognize and make provision for young people's differences both from adults and from each other. The Young Offenders Act tried to rectify the perceived inequities that resulted from the previous law by specifying a standardized approach based on individual accountability and responsibility. However, developmentally many juvenile offenders are still struggling with issues from the preschool level and are not developmentally capable of being responsible for their actions. However, they vary widely in their developmental issues and treatment needs, as shown by the hypothetical example of a 15-year-old who has assaulted a teacher. Therefore, the Young Offenders Act should be changed to recognize differences between offenders and provide for greater flexibility and a wider range of dispositions and varying combinations of custody and treatment, based more on the needs of the whole person. 8 references