Queensland newspapers join forces with a message for our politicians, on behalf of our communities. This is not the state we want – one in the grip of a youth crime epidemic so widespread that readers from the border north to the Cape live in fear that it will be their car, their home or their life that is taken next.
The Palaszczuk government has been accused of failing to have a plan to address the youth crime crisis after it was revealed a review of a major strategy was nearly six months overdue.
Children held in windowless police watch house cells are experiencing “full breakdowns”, with human rights commissioners revealing grim scenes of shocking diets and well-meaning police officers who are receiving no training to deal with juveniles.
There are calls for social media giants to ban juvenile criminals from posting about their law-breaking activities, as tough new laws nab 90 youths.
The nation and its states are battling a leadership crisis, poorly served by a mediocre bunch of also-rans, writes Mike O’Connor.
Former Labor government minister Robert Schwarten has called for both sides of politics to tackle youth crime with an all-party standing Parliamentary Committee.
Once the die is cast it seems that no amount of intervention appears to change the course of events when it comes to these kids. It’s time we look for a way forward on youth crime, writes Robert Schwarten.
A special investigation into youth crime at Maryborough has uncovered staggering new details about a pack of out-of-control teen thieves and one boy’s disgraceful act just hours after a triple fatal crash.
Deputy Premier Steven Miles has slammed the ‘politicisation’ of the triple-fatal crash near Maryborough this week, saying it was impossible to stamp out crime entirely and ridiculing an LNP youth crime policy.
The teenager allegedly behind the wheel of a stolen car that killed three innocent people, including a 17-year-old girl, in Maryborough was known to police and under the watch of the state.
The so-called “strongest” youth crime laws in the nation would have done nothing to prevent Sunday night’s tragic triple-fatal crash. More needs to be done, writes The Editor.
Annastacia Palaszczuk has defended her government’s record on youth crime and sidestepped questions about greater media scrutiny of court cases involving young people.
With 18 deaths in two years, there is no denying Queensland’s youth crime crisis has spiralled out of control. The Premier needs to stop playing politics and act, writes The Editor.
Original URL: https://www.couriermail.com.au/topics/enough-is-enough/page/18