Queensland teens reveal why they steal cars in new report

The reasons why young car thieves steal cars has been revealed in an exclusive report which a leading criminologist says shows how to reduce youth crime.

Cairns teens pose up on Instagram in front of an allegedly stolen car.

North Queensland teens have revealed approval from peers and the adrenalin rush are the main reasons why they steal cars in a new report that shows a total disregard for the law.

The “Deterring Drivers” report, conducted by the Australian Catholic University, evaluated a six-week program held in Townsville for young car thieves aged between 13 and 17 who have lived around different areas of North and Far North Queensland.

It found that young people who steal cars are influenced by gaining status with their peers, feelings of boredom, and the adrenaline rush of stealing and driving a car.

One young offender, *Daniel, said: “Joyriding is pretty much stealing cars; go and have fun in it, do whatever you want in it, thrash it, crash it, pull it apart.”

He said his stealing began after he began “hanging around the wrong crowd”.

A smoking ceremony held as part of the ‘Deterring Drivers’ program.

Another participant, *Ben, described how he had been initially looking for money and other items to steal from cars when he had come across a car key that had been left in a vehicle.

He said he and his friends decided to take the vehicle to drive for “a little bit of fun”.

“It’s just something to do,” Ben said.

“When you’re out there, and you’re a kid on the streets, and you have mates that are doing that stuff, you just want to have fun with them. It’s like the root of the evil is your friends.”

The report comes as police have announced 505 vehicles were stolen in the Cairns region this year, and off the back of a record 1289 stolen in 2022.

Several of the boys engaged in the ‘Deterring Drivers’ program look set to get apprenticeships with a panel beater they met during the six-week course.

The report said that joyriding can increase a person’s social status in their peer group.

The researchers found drugs and alcohol were not usually involved, and fear of punishment or getting caught did not act as a deterrent.

One participant added that there was “a lack of identity” and another suggested that the young car thieves had lost a “connection to feeling like their actions have consequences”.

The participants noted, yet often disregarded, the fear of death or injury in a car accident.

As part of the six-week program participants were given a talk by a victim of crime which they hoped would help build a sense of empathy and understanding of consequences.

Lead researcher Shannon Dodd, a criminologist at the Australian Catholic University, said that often some of the teens “felt forgotten about and not cared about”.

“Sometimes the response is not to care about the community,” Ms Dodd said.

“If you feel rejected, you reject back.”

She said the program aimed to bring people into the community to show that “young people were cared about”.

Dr Shannon Dodd ... the Australian Catholic University criminologist says ‘jobs not jail’ will reduce youth crime.

Ms Dodd said she hoped the report showed the government “jobs, not jail” are the real way to reduce crime rates.

“The prospect of gaining, or losing, a job is a stronger motivator than incarceration for joyriders,” she said.

The participants in the program expressed a strong interest in cars. They attended a panel beating workshop where “participants came to life,” according to researchers, and one participant subsequently offered an apprenticeship at the business.

The same business is looking at hiring another three participants for apprenticeships.

Ms Dodd said that the response from the state government to the report – which calls for the program to be rolled out to other areas around the state – has been lukewarm.

“They said they were very grateful for the program and the report but are ‘taking the findings with caution’ and have not committed to more funding,” she said.

“It seems this government is committed to funding punitive measures, such as building more detention centres, because it’s politically popular.”

* Not their real names

Originally published as Queensland teens reveal why they steal cars in new report