How to halt youth crime wave

YOUR front-page headline read “This must stop now” (C-M, Dec 28). We all agree that youth crime must stop and that the deaths of innocent people are a terrible tragedy.

Put an end to youth crime.

Where we disagree is how to stop these frightening incidents.

After more than 30 years experience with young offenders, I know that we need a multi-pronged approach.

Of course, all victims of child abuse and domestic violence don’t become offenders, neither do all children who struggle to learn at school.

Combine the two factors, learning difficulties and childhood trauma, however, and you have a powerful predictor of offending behaviour.

Learning difficulties can be any combination of low intelligence, ADHD, speech and language disorders, dyslexia, and/or other developmental disorders.

Trauma can be physical, sexual, or emotional abuse plus witnessing domestic violence or suffering neglect.

A child who is already struggling to learn the skills needed to survive in society will be further handicapped by anxiety and depression as a result of trauma.

Law and order solutions come too late. By the age of 12 or 14 these children are already alienated from school.

They are already engaging in high-risk activities to impress their peers.

Punishment just raises their outlaw status and going to “juvy” is just another adventure.

We know that early incarceration increases the likelihood of reoffending.

“Consequences for their actions” do not stop offending behaviour.

The only way to stop youth crime, and to save the lives of the innocent bystanders who get caught up with it, is to focus on prevention.

Go into every Year 2 classroom and pick out the unruly, disruptive children who are struggling to learn.

Support their families, fund assessment and therapy, and keep them engaged with school sports and pro-social activities.

This ongoing support may be expensive, but not as expensive and counterproductive as building millions of dollars worth of youth detention centres.

And the lives that will be saved are worth every cent.

Dr Meg Perkins, Tweed Coast Psychology and Educational Programs

THE state’s youth justice system is not just broken, it’s in tatters.

It is falling apart at the seams, and has been for many years.

Police are peeved off, they are frustrated, they are fed up to the back tooth, because they are doing their job, only for it to be in vain all too often.

They are succeeding in apprehending juvenile offenders and making them accountable for their crimes and actions in a court of law, only to have errant and lenient magistrates and judges continue to dish out manifestly inadequate sentences to them, which consequently means most juvenile offenders are still not doing any time in jail.

Bail should be regarded as a privilege, not something that is offered to every juvenile offender.

The public has a right to know what the Palaszczuk government, led by Justice Minister Shannon Fentiman, is finally going to do to crack down hard on juvenile offenders by forcing magistrates and judges, through legislation, to stop going soft on them, and end the perpetuality of youth crime.

Tim Badrick, Laidley

SUPERINTENDENT John Hallam says he struggles to understand why violent crimes are occurring, yet the public can clearly see the reason.

There are absolutely no consequences for their actions.

Young thugs offend time after time (usually with escalating violence), then walk away from court with a slap on the wrist and a smug smile on their face.

Instead of worrying about the criminals’ wellbeing, how about concentrating on the wellbeing of law-abiding citizens that they are terrorising and, sadly, killing?

Christine Barron, Bannockburn

RECIDIVIST youth crime involving car theft and home invasion requires a different policy approach as the current policy is not protecting society.

Unfortunately many perpetrators of these crimes are already known to police, meaning they have likely committed previous offences.

Clearly parental responsibility and supervision is lacking.

This is where the government must step in to ensure public safety.

It is time to revisit the previous policy of “boot camps” in remote areas to take the young offenders out of their current environment that fails to instil any discipline or respect for others.

In years gone by, such offenders would receive corporal punishment from both police and parents.

In modern society that is no longer acceptable, so other measures must be taken.

The onus could be put on previous offenders to demonstrate why they should not be removed from their present environment to a place of rehabilitation where they can no longer do harm.

Rehabilitation takes time.

Public safety can be ensured overnight by removing offenders from the streets.

David Muir, Indooroopilly

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DON’T BUY VOICE BID

STEPHEN Morgan (Letters, Dec 27) seems to confuse the beginning with the end in advocating for a “yes” vote for the Voice referendum, despite having no details of the “final product”.

A “yes” vote will not merely be a “commencement of the process” as he suggests.

This “process” has already commenced, as it should before the referendum.

A “yes” vote in the referendum with no details of the “final product” will be the end of this process, and empower the government to make as yet unknown significant changes to our Constitution.

Does Morgan seriously suggest we should all “buy before we try”?

Garth Crichton, Chelmer

THE rush of ex-prime ministers, past and present parliamentarians and Courier-Mail readers to oppose a referendum on a “Voice” to parliament for Indigenous people is really saying that we don’t care what the referendum is about, we will oppose it anyway, and we will vote “no” regardless.

What are they opposing?

The referendum has not been put out. There are no details, because there is no referendum.

The opposition to the referendum – or rather the opponents to the referendum – have sprung out before anything has been printed and yet the Uluru Statement from the Heart is available in print and audio.

How many of the opponents of the proposed referendum have actually read or listened to it?

The Prime Minister of the government that was overwhelmingly voted in most recently, has stated quite clearly that the outcome of the referendum is not for a separate parliament, it is a body that recommends – it will not have powers to legislate.

Maybe Carmel Seipel (Letters, Dec 28) is right, but instead of listening to Jacinta Price, go and live Senator Price’s experience and see if a first-hand experience will provide a different point of view.

Peter Haslett, Cashmere

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TRUE PRINCESS

HOW charmingly refreshing it was to read about Crown Princess Mary’s Tasmanian visit (C-M, Dec 28).

Like the Princess of Wales and the Princess Royal she manages royal duties with dignity and focus.

It’s a pity Meghan Markle didn’t follow Mary, Kate and Anne’s example, saving us all the cringing misery of her perceived victimisation.

Markle has proven she isn’t princess material, so let’s hope she stops complaining about how badly she’s been treated, and finds some meaningful employment in 2023.

Richard Marman, Meridan Plains

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Centenary Bridge, Jindalee. Picture: Liam Kidston

BRIDGE PLAN WON’T END BOTTLENECK

TENDERS have been awarded for the upgrade of the Centenary Bridge at Jindalee (C-M, Dec 28).

The upgrade to three lanes each way is expected to result in improved traffic flow and savings in travel time.

Three lanes over the river alone will not bring any joy.

Before and after the bridge, there will still be only two lanes each way.

Three lanes of vehicles on the bridge will have to merge again into two lanes.

It’s like creating a balloon in a hose – the flow rate will be unchanged.

It makes no sense. Almost $300m of public funds will be wasted.

Les Savage, Durack

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