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https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/jun/09/innocent-queensland-children-pleading-guilty-to-avoid-harsh-bail-laws-lawyers-say>
"Young people in Queensland are pleading guilty to offences they did not commit
– or where there is little evidence to support charges – to avoid spending
extreme periods on remand in the state’s buckling youth justice system, lawyers
say.
Queensland has the nation’s largest youth prison population, and recent data
obtained by Guardian Australia reveals 88% of children in detention centres and
police watch houses were being held unsentenced.
On 15 March, 337 young people were in custody in Queensland – more than double
the number in Victoria.
Lawyers and youth advocates say the state’s bail policies – which have resulted
in increasingly large numbers of children being held on remand while court
matters drag on – have effectively imposed extrajudicial punishments on young
people who may ultimately be exonerated, or not sentenced to prison time.
Children’s court data suggests that typically one in three children accused of
offences will either be found not guilty, or have their matters discontinued.
Guardian Australia’s Written Off investigation has documented overcrowding
and understaffing in Queensland’s youth detention system, which advocates say
is further criminalising children who can spend weeks at a time in solitary
confinement."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
