A critique of the principles of the Young Offenders Act

A unique feature of the Young Offenders Act is a section on the Principles of the Act. The principles clearly focus on the responsibility of young offenders, their legal rights, and the protection of society. The focus on the due process of the law is a welcome addition to the Juvenile Justice system. However, these principles do not recognize any other rights for adolescents, downgrade the importance of their needs, and do not take into account the cognitive, psychological and social functioning of adolescents. In addition, the principles implicitly reverse those important principles that have guided our society and the clinical process for more than a century; namely, a shift from a "therapeutic state" to a "legalistic state", the roles of institutions in our society, and the adultomorphization of adolescence.