Youth being tried as an adult. Youth Criminal Justice Act.

Youth Criminal Justice Act
Name
Institutional Affiliation
Youth Criminal Justice Act
In a democratic country, the constitution has laws determining how the executive, the legislature, and the judicial systems are operated. It gives jurisdiction to the three arms of government on how they should carry out their duties within the state. The legislature has the responsibility of creating and amending laws as required while the judiciary has the duty of trying and prosecuting individuals, organizations, and other entities that break the laws (Barnhorst, 2004). In Canada, the justice system outlines how youths and adults are prosecuted in court. Ideally, the youths are considered to be of minority ages and have their distinct courts where their hearings are done (Bala, Carrington & Roberts, 2009).
The judicial system of the country is outlined well to ensure the line identifying the trial of youths and adults is well understood. Instances of youths being tried as adults in criminal cases of murder, among others, have been witnessed in Canada in the past (Barnhorst, 2004). However, this is a problem that evokes strong emotions from the public and other countries. The boundary defining the process of trial for the youth and adults must be understood well within the judicial system. A clear understanding would make it easy for prosecutions to ensure that youths are not wrongly tried as adults since they could face harsh judgments. According to research, most youths that commit crime are subjected to adult trials which are considered unfair to them. This paper explores the policy on the youths being tried as adults and how it has impacted the justice system in Canada.
Crime in Canada is considered to be any act that contravenes the laws. The youth and adults are subjected to the Criminal Act, which defines how they are tried or prosecuted. Although all crimes are similar despite the age of the person committing them, the Youth Criminal Justice Act protects the rights and freedoms of the youth aged between 12 to 17 years. Under the age of 12 years, a child cannot be charged with a crime. However, any individual above the age of 18 years is subject to trial in an adult court. Research indicates that the Youth Criminal Justice Act came into force on April 1, 2003, replacing the Young Offenders’ Act. The introduction of the Act was aimed at addressing concerns related to the Young Offenders’ Act. One of the significant reforms that the Act was to address included the overuse of the courts and incarceration in less serious cases (Bala, Carrington, & Roberts, 2009).
Disparity and lack of fairness in sentencing, the lack of proper reintegration system for the youths released from custody, and the need to take concerns seriously into cases of victims were addressed in the newly introduced Act. Compared to the Young Offenders’ Act, the Youth Criminal Justice Act was more effective because it provided a better legal framework for the trial and sentencing of youths (Bala, Carrington & Roberts, 2009). The Canadian parliament was solely responsible for the amendment of the Young Offenders Act to the Youth Criminal Justice Act. Also, in 2012, the legislature adopted further amendments aimed to strengthen...