In a recent edition of The Courier Mail, there were calls for the government to get smarter, not tougher, in dealing with youth crime. The latest Crime Report shows that youth crime has steadily increased since 2015/16. Why?
The problem starts in our schools, where certain youth quickly learn that anti-social behaviour, such as abusing and assaulting fellow students and teachers and dealing drugs, is quite acceptable, and the resultant punishment, if any, is light on. This and a lenient Youth Justice Act are two ingredients for Youth Crime to flourish!
Surely it's common sense that if the penalties for stealing and wrecking cars, breaking into homes and shops and assaulting people are light, often a slap on the wrist, the errant youngster will take the risk and commit the crime. To them, it's fun! A chance to big note themselves with an ever-widening audience on Instagram and Tik Tok. These social media sites are full of such examples.
By all means, get smarter by eliminating these offensive social media blogs, and ferret out the drug dealers and criminal gangs which help promote these teenage criminals. Start a crime prevention program in our schools.
When caught and sentenced, lock these young criminals up in isolation. Re-educate them for as long as it takes to properly rehabilitate them. But don't go soft on being tough. The young criminal must understand, `If you do the crime- then you will do the time`.