Three nights ago, four male youths aged 12-14 broke into a small business & smashed windows & four surveillance cameras in another one next door. Now, these four youths are extremely well known to Police & in the community from quite a number of previous incidents.
These kids stroll up & down the main street in full view of everyone yet no authority approaches them to either go to school or go home in school hours. Outboard engines are stolen from dinghies a mere 100 metres from the Police Station, parked cars vandalised etc etc. all with apparent immunity !
The security cameras clearly identified them & when Police questioned the the kids instantly admitted to the break in & were let ago again "because they admitted to the break in" !
Now, there's some $10,000 damage & many thousands from previous incidents yet these kids still roam freely. The parents are apparently not asked about paying compensation etc.
Let's pray the new Qld Coalition Govt will push through their election promise of adult crime, adult time asap !

It's not just the Qld government who should - but probably won't - 'do something about it'. It's all over the country, on the news every night, headlines dealing with arson and crime, usually committed by youngsters.

It's so common, so regular, the most people don't take any notice unless they are directly affected. Australia is rooted, and we don't have the sort of people needed to fix it.

The police are useless. Governments are more interested in transgenderism, woke, what people might say online, keeping Communist China happy etcetera, than they are in cracking down on real crime.

We even have a cop convicted of the manslaughter of a 95 year old dementia patient fighting to stay out of jail. Nobody would have dreamed of not being jailed for the next worst thing to murder on the 'old days'. Now he just might get off with a bond, keep his job, and go on to be Commissioner of police.

What's a bit of breaking and entering.

Hi Indyvidual,

I live in Victoria not Queensland. However youth crime
should concern us all. I've just read quite a shocking
article by Aimee McVeigh who's visited quite a few
youth detention centres and she describes them graphically.
Her article is more than a month old - but it's still
relevant.

She speaks about the election slogan - "Adult crime, adult
time". And says that the slogan won't make Queenslanders
safer. She tells us that fear should be fought with facts.
That posturing will put even more pressure on our maxed out
youth detention centres that will harm more children.

There's more at :

http://theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/0ct/21/queensland-election-Tnp-youth-crime-policy-crisafulli

I'm not sure what the answer is in trying to solve this
problem. Perhaps programs giving these kids a purpose in life
would help? Keeping them busy instead of bored? It will be
interesting to see what others have to say.

My apologies. Here's the link again:

http://theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/oct/21/queensland-election-lnp-youth-crime-policy-crisafulli

Youth crime is a serious problem, but I don’t think being “tough on crime” is the answer. All the studies I’ve seen found that harsh penalties, especially putting kids in lockups and adult jails, make the problem worse not better. Young kids in particular are much more likely to go on to a life of crime if they get caught up in the criminal justice system. Teenagers’ brains are not fully developed, so they are not responsible for their actions in the same way as adults. And locking children up is very, very expensive.

This article has interesting summaries of different approaches to juvenile crime worldwide:

http://independentaustralia.net/politics/politics-display/global-youth-justice-methods-a-lesson-for-australia,19116

but I don’t think being “tough on crime” is the answer.
Rhian,
Depends what you interpret as "tough on crime". Four Star Motels with internet, gym, health checks, free dental, good food etc etc. really isn't "tough" in anyone's language let alone for the young $h.theads whose parents also don't give a $h.t about the victims as neither do Judges & Magistrates.
If Govt is incapable of dealing with offenders then they really should let victims defend themselves rather than persecute them following an attack. I guarantee that there won't be a shortage of cells within a very short time.
I never got a single Cent of compensation for over a hundred thousand Dollars worth of gear stolen nor would this great system allow me to claim it at Tax time.
I once asked a 17 year old after we remanded him in custody why he continued to smash windows & ruin refrigerators in a Supermarket to the tune of over a hundred thousand Dollars & he gleefully replied "because you send me to Jail". Now, if the people who watched him damaging the premises were allowed to stop him & teach him a lesson he most certainly would not want to do it again ! The reason why they do it is not some "complex problem" as do-gooders like to describe it. The real reason is that they know they're not getting reprimanded. The whole youth crime fiasco is a direct result of academic expert idiocy ! It's literally their fault !