In this article, Research Fellow Mia Schlicht contextualises and disseminates the IPA’s research on criminal justice reform and better sentencing options.
David Crisafulli’s commitment to introduce “Crime Canoe Camps” if elected to government to combat youth crime and enhance rehabilitation options has opened the way to an important field of reform.
The plan, as announced, is designed to combat Queensland’s youth crime rates by intercepting young people who engage in “risky behaviours” such as graffiti, substance abuse or skipping school.
Youth who are caught, but not criminally charged, can be sent to the intervention camps on a voluntary basis by their parents, police, schools or social workers for a period of one to three weeks to “reset” their behaviour.
Identifying youth on the wrong side of the law early and diverting them from a path of crime is important.
Crisafulli’s plan has merit, but this is what the plan needs to include if it is to help put kids back on the right track and make Queensland communities safer.
The first task of policymakers should be to ensure the scope of eligible participants is not too narrow.
If the camps are limited to youth who are not already in contact with the criminal justice system, then this leaves judges without a valuable sentencing option when dealing with low-level youth offenders.
This offending group largely avoids incarceration because of the sentiment in legal and welfare circles that prison will do more harm than good.
Due to the limited alternative options, these offenders often evade any punishment at all.
The lack of consequences means these youth ultimately do not fear the law and continue to flout it.
The second task of policymakers it to ensure the duration of the program is long enough to be effective.
One to three weeks is not nearly sufficient to seriously address the drivers behind youth offending.
This was the core reason boot camps trialled by the previous Newman government failed in 2015.
Lastly, policymakers must ensure these camps give youths the tools to become productive members of society.
The announcement referred to sporting courses such as canoeing and abseiling, which may be old-fashioned structured fun, but they do not lead to a job.
In California, Rancho Cielo, a rehabilitation ranch for non-violent offenders on probation and at-risk youth, has achieved exceptional results in reducing recidivism by making sure the youth who are sent there are ready for work upon completion of the program.
There, youth are given the tools tolead an independent life by obtaining practical and employable skills in areas such as automotive technology, the building trades, agriculture, and hospitality.
It’s cost effective too.
Rancho Cielo operates at just a quarter of the cost of the local prison and has reduced youth reoffending rates from 40 per cent to 15 per cent over two decades.
The success of similar programs in the United States highlights how far behind Australia’s policy response is, and Crisafulli deserves full marks for putting it on the agenda.
Far too often the discussion around youth justice centres on the use of prisons.
But the truth is, if a young person requires imprisonment, then many opportunities for intervention were missed by the criminal justice system along the way.
Failures in early intervention come at a significant cost to taxpayers.
The average cost of detaining one person for one year in Queensland’s youth detention centres is approximately $669,000, and 69 per cent ofyouths released from detention will re-offend and return within 12 months.
Research shows that violent offending is commonly associated with alcohol and drug use, poor parental supervision, contact with peers involved in criminal behaviour, and deficits in social problem-solving skills.
Engaging in activities such as vandalism, substance abuse and property damage are therefore precursors for more extreme acts of violence.
To stop the escalation to violent crime, the criminal justice system needs to halt anti-social behaviour early and deliver outcomes that provide the opportunity for youth offenders to get back on track.
This is why early alternative punishments for non-violent, low-level crime are integral to improving community safety, and why the LNP’s announcement should be welcomed as an important first step by all Queenslanders who believe in law and order.
When it comes to crime and community safety, there is no room to leave reform half finished. Young criminals are bold; whoever forms government in Queensland after the election needs to show that it can be too.
