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Letters to Kerry
Stories of Victory, Struggle, Tragedy, & Workplace Concerns
October 13, 2005:
I would have to concur about our YCJA. If you're going to print something about it I suggest you call it by its proper acronym, which stands for Youth Criminal Justice Act.
I have several friends that are Correctional Officers here at the Youth Custody Centre in Victoria, and in addition, my wife is a Probation Officer at the centre, so know only too well about some of the inmates and the treatment that they receive. Pretty much every thing that your writer [Jason - Sept. 10] describes in his letter is factual. The TV, the video games, computers, etc. are all a reality.
It is no wonder that a lot of the YO's thrive in this environment as a lot of them come from families that offer no structure, no rules, no square meals, and no entertainment. Unfortunately, our system is not very good at separating the "misguided" youth, that need to learn a lesson and accept responsibility, from the youth that will go on to becoming adult criminals. Which should go to jail and which shouldn't?
It only seems natural that if a youth is given enough rope eventually they'll hang themselves, and unfortunately our system is sometimes far too lenient with those that simply need a dose of reality in order to learn and move on. I think the statistics would probably bear witness to the segment of our youth society that have repeatedly been caught in stolen autos, doing break-ins, etc. What if those kids had known that if they crossed the line they would receive a "for sure" set punishment? How many would still commit the offence? Tough question....
When there was a lot of TV attention being paid to the teenager in Malaysia (American kid) who had committed a bunch of vandalism to autos and was facing a sentence of "caning" I happened to be in the Youth Investigation section. My partner and I would invariably ask the youths that we found ourselves dealing with if they were aware of the situation with the kid in Malaysia.
Surprisingly, a lot of them were. We asked these kids if they had known that they would be "caned" for what they were presently in custody for, would they still have committed the offence. NOT surprisingly, every one of them said they would not have done what they did had they known that they would be caned as a punishment.
What's the quick answer Kerry? I'm not sure. But I do agree that we need to start making our youth accountable for their actions. If you are committing "adult" crimes, then you should be treated as an adult. Make the sentencing uniform across the board for all offenders. If the crime carries a penalty of 1 year of incarceration at a "work" facility, then give them one year at a work facility. I really like the idea of youths being put to work at a farm, work camp, or something of the like which requires a lot of hard, physical labor. By the time they have completed their day of work they don't have the time or energy to brush up on new crime techniques, such as the latest way to hot-wire a car.
Call me hard line if you want, but what I've seen for the last nineteen years hasn't sold me that we're doing things right. Why not ask the kids themselves what it is that would prevent them from doing crime? The toy manufacturers trust their judgment enough to market the items that they put their stamp of approval on. The teenagers that are out there now are a lot more savvy than they were when I was a teenager so why not?
Murray R. Mashford
**The opinions expressed in this letter are those of the writer and are not necessarily those of the Saanich Police Department or the Municipality of Saanich. Murray R. Mashford is a 19-year member of the Saanich Police Department and has worked in a number of Divisions while with the Department including Street Crime Unit, Youth Investigator, Organized Crime Agency of B.C. (Now known as the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit). At present Murray is a Sergeant on a Uniformed Patrol platoon.
