Balancing act

摘要

A damaged fence, a stolen chocolate bar, some verbal abuse and anti-social behaviour. For decades, these are the sorts of crimes which have got children caught up in the criminal justice system for the first time. Of course, any young person should understand the consequences of their actions and make amends. However for a minor first time offence or misdemeanour to result in a criminal record, it can often feel disproportionate. Furthermore we know that often those young people who receive a formal record, disproportionally go on to repeat offend.