Chapter 8: First Contact: Police and Diversionary Measures

MULTIPLE CHOICE

1. With regard to discretion and decision making, what does the YCJA require police to do?

a. charge all young offenders on a second offence

b. formally charge all youth regardless of the nature of the offence

c. consider if a warning is a sufficient response to the youth’s behaviour

d. caution or warn all young offenders on a first offence

2. According to research on police discretion, which of the following factors has the greatest influence on police decisions to lay a charge?

a. the victim’s wishes

b. the location of the crime

c. the seriousness of the offence

d. the offender’s appearance and attitude

3. Which of the following is NOT considered to be an extralegal factor affecting police discretion?

1. the youth being uncooperative or defiant
2. the seriousness of the offence
3. a youth’s appearance and attitude
4. a youth`s race

4. Which of the following is an example of an extralegal factor in police discretion?

a. the seriousness of the offence

b. the race/ethnicity of the offender

c. the weapon used by the offender

d. the police record of the offender

5. Which principle was applied to the YOA’s alternative measures programs and policies?

a. mediation

b. rehabilitation

c. extrajudicial sanctions

d. least possible interference

6. How do diversionary principles under the YCJA differ from those of the YOA?

a. YCJA prevents use of diversion for repeat offenders.

b. YCJA uses diversion to ensure “meaningful consequences”.

c. YCJA does not provide framework for diversion implementation.

d. YCJA does not actively promote diverting of youth from formal justice system.

7. According to Carrington and Schulenberg (2008) which of the following release conditions was not mentioned as one of the most common imposed by police?

1. curfew
2. keep the peace, and be of good behaviour
3. reside at a certain address
4. no alcohol/drugs

8. Which of the following scenarios is an example of net-widening?

a. Youth with similar offences are given different sanctions.

b. Youth do not have access to diversionary measure programs.

c. A large department store refuses to participate in mediation with youth who shoplifted.

d. Youth receive referrals to extrajudicial measures program rather than verbal warnings.

9. According to the text, how does Chief Justice Anderson of the Supreme Court describe prosecuting for failing to complete a diversionary program?

1. illegal and useless as a deterrent
2. useless as a deterrent and contrary to restorative justice principles
3. illegal and unnecessarily punitive
4. unnecessarily punitive and difficult to prove in court

10. Elliott (2005) argued that shaming can be disintegrative when it is a part of mediation and conferencing, so it is more effective to promote which of the following concepts rather than shaming?

1. insight
2. retrospection
3. sympathy
4. empathy

SHORT ANSWER

1. What is police discretion and what courses of action may a police officer consider under the YCJA?

• Police discretion is the decision-making power police officers have to make decisions with minimal legal requirements about how to proceed with youth who are suspected or accused of a crime.
• Possible courses of action are to (1) issue a warning (formal or informal) to the youth about his or her behaviour and then let the person go; (2) arrest and hold the youth in police custody (parents/guardians must be notified); (3) take the young person to the police station for questioning before releasing her or him; (4) write a report on the young person before release; (5) charge the youth with an offence; (6) release the young person with conditions; (7) (in some provinces) refer the young person to a diversionary program or youth justice committee; and (8) hold the youth in detention (maximum 24 hours) for further judicial processing, beginning with a bail hearing.

REF: 255

1. Explain the difference between the terms “differential involvement” and “differential treatment.”

• Differential involvement refers to disproportionate minority police contact because of frequent criminal activity, involvement in serious crime, or persistent criminal offending.
• Differential treatment refers to disproportionate minority police contact because of systemic inequalities in the justice system or discriminatory practices by justice personnel, including the police.

REF: 266

ESSAY QUESTIONS

1. What is racial profiling? After defining this term, summarize some of the important arguments and research in the text which supports or contradicts the existence of racial profiling.

• Racial profiling exists when racial differences in law enforcement surveillance activities cannot be totally explained by racial differences in criminal activity or other legally relevant factors.

Racial profiling doesn’t exist

• Police maintain that racial profiling is not an official or even informal policy or practice.
• There are no official federal statistics on race and crime because human rights organizations have objected to the collection of justice statistics by race.

Racial profiling exists

• Wortley and Tanner (2003) found that Black high school students in Toronto were more likely to be report being stopped by police and that Asian and South Asian students were less likely to report being stopped by police.
• The chief of police in Kingston, Ontario, commissioned research by Wortley that found that Black youth are four times more likely to be stopped by the police, and Aboriginal youth are 1.5 times more likely.
• Satzewich and Shaffir (2009) conducted informal conversations with police officers from the Hamilton (Ontario) Police Service, and concluded that police culture views profiling as an integral part of police work.
• The Toronto Star’s analysis of “carding” in Toronto found that Black people were three times more likely to be stopped and carded than white people and that differences between Black and white carding rates were highest in more affluent, mostly white areas of the city. Wortley calls this the “out of place” phenomenon.
• Fitzgerald and Carrington (2011) used data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth and Children and concluded that disproportionate minority contact with police is due to racially discriminatory policing.

REF: 261-266

1. Outline the four different types of alternative measures programming discussed in the text. Provide an example of each.

• In reconciliation/mediation offenders and victims are brought together; apologies either verbal or written, and the writing of essays or letters are among the program’s elements. These types of programs are based on the belief that a productive response to crime is to encourage all affected parties to participate in conflict resolution.

– Example: A victim writes a letter to the offender outlining how the theft of their car impacted her and her family and their ability to carry out their daily routines. The offender writes a letter apologizing for his actions and promises to think about the long-term consequences his actions have on others.

• Retribution or restitution involves things such as fines, financial compensation or work for the victims, or community service. The idea is that payment in money, labour, or time is used to compensate the victim for his or her loss.

– Example: A youth spray paints an elderly couple’s garage door. The offender and victims agree that the youth will buy new paint and repaint the garage for the elderly couple. On top of this the youth agrees to volunteer 10 hours of his time to help out the elderly couple with yard work.

• Rehabilitative/ educational programs are exemplified by the StopLift Education Program run by the John Howard Society. The program is designed to create awareness in young people of the effects of their actions on themselves, the victims, the community and society at large, and to provide an opportunity for the young person to reflect on his or her development; discuss values; and focus on issues such as self-esteem, peer pressure, and decision-making skills. Similar programs have been developed as preventive educational programs for youth who have been involved in auto theft.
• Restorative intervention programs vary in their focus and can involve community conferencing, family conferencing, or healing circles. These programs usually involve meetings of the offenders, their supporters, the victims and their supporters, community members such as a police or school representative, and a trained community facilitator. The purpose of the meetings is to develop a reparation agreement and promote restoration from the harm done by the behaviour of the young offender.

– Example: Valley Restorative Justice Society in Nova Scotia offers conferencing sessions and healing circles designed to address the harm caused by a youth’s behaviour and to develop a reparation plan for the youth.

REF: 274-275