U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government, Department of Justice.

NCJRS Virtual Library

The Virtual Library houses over 235,000 criminal justice resources, including all known OJP works.
Click here to search the NCJRS Virtual Library

Structuring Police Discretion: The Effect on Referrals to Youth Court

NCJ Number
224176
Journal
Criminal Justice Policy Review Volume: 19 Issue: 3 Dated: September 2008 Pages: 349-367
Author(s)
Peter J. Carrington; Jennifer L. Schulenberg
Date Published
September 2008
Length
19 pages
Annotation
This study examined the impact of Canada’s Youth Criminal Justice Act of 2002 (YCJA) on police discretion in interaction with apprehended young offenders.
Abstract
The study found that the Youth Criminal Justice Act was successful in achieving its objective of reducing youth court referrals by structuring police discretion. There was a significant change in police use of charges and a corresponding increase in the use of alternatives to charging. The substitution of extrajudicial measures for charges occurred in all four regions of Canada. This occurred to a much greater extent with minor offenses than with serious youth crime. According to Section Four of the YCJA, which came into force on April 1, 2003, extrajudicial measures are often the most appropriate and effective way to address youth crime, since they allow for effective and timely interventions focused on correcting offending behavior. Extrajudicial measures are presumed to be particularly appropriate for a youth who has committed a nonviolent offense and has not previously been found guilty of an offense. This provides structure and guidance for police in dealing with first offenders who have committed minor offenses. This study used data from the Canadian Uniform Crime Reporting survey to determine whether the use of formal action (judicial measures or charging) decreased after the passage of the YCJA, as well as whether the use of informal action and diversion had increased. The analysis also examined the issues of “net-widening” and proportionality in the use of police discretion. The levels and trends of annual time series of indicators of youth crime and police action were examined from January 1, 1986, to December 31, 2005. 6 figures, 2 tables, 12 notes, and 71 references