New Qld youth crime laws feared to create chaos in youth detention

Serious concerns have been raised about the impact Queensland’s new youth crime laws will have inside detention centres with staff fearing an increase in uncontrollable behaviour and violence.

There are fears riots and attacks could escalate in youth detentions amid new laws.

Increased assaults, riots and staff attacks are the major concerns for youth detention centre staff off the back of the government’s strict new juvenile crime laws.

Dozens of submissions have been made on the Making Queensland Safer Amendment Bill, which is set to add 20 additional criminal offences under the Adult Time, Adult Crime umbrella.

But several leading industry bodies have raised serious concerns about the additional offences, saying it will lead to chaos inside detention centres and extreme penalties for young people who are being used by adults to commit their crimes.

Australian Workers’ Union (AWU) Secretary Stacey Schinnerl said in a submission that staff in detention centres were already stretched to their limits, and were concerned the influx of children going behind bars would lead to serious problems.

“Queensland’s Youth Detention Centres are running at constant capacity,” Ms Schinnerl said in a submission.

“Our members do not currently have the staffing resources to safely run these facilities day-to-day, let alone provide consistent access to education or meaningful rehabilitation programs.

“This may lead the government to considering double and triple bunking in Youth Detention Centres.

“This would be a disaster for staff and the rehabilitation outcomes of youth offenders.

“AWU members strongly oppose the practice of double or triple bunking in Youth Detention Centres, as it leads to a higher risk of physical and sexual violence among detainees.

“Such conditions are fundamentally at odds with both safety and effective rehabilitation.”

Ms Schinnerl also raised the issue of rioting.

Stacey Schinnerl from the Australian Workers Union.

“Housing multiple detainees in a single room also increases the risk of violence toward staff, as young people can co-ordinate assaults, riots, and other disruptive behaviour, threatening the good order and safety of the facility,” she wrote.

The government’s new youth crime laws were introduced last year and meant children would be sentenced as adults on offences of murder, manslaughter, and other serious offences.

Earlier this month, an amendment to the Bill was introduced to parliament to add 20 extra offences, including attempt to murder, torture, arson, sexual assault, rape, and endangering a police officer when driving a motor vehicle

While largely in support of the new laws, Queensland Police Union president Shane Prior also flagged the concern of overcrowding, and the impact it would have on police watch houses.

“There is universal agreement that police watch houses are not suitable for the extended detention of young people,” Mr Prior said in a submission.

“Police watch houses are unable to provide the level of care and support that is present in a youth detention centre.”

Other offences to be added include trafficking drugs, which Queensland Mental Health Commission Alcohol and Drugs Reform director Sean Popovich said should be excluded.

Mr Popovich said young people were often used or coerced by adults to do their dirty work, and this new amendment would see them face serious penalties.

“Australian and international research has found that children involved with child protection and youth justice services are regularly subject to child criminal exploitation, such as being used or coerced to traffic drugs,” Mr Popovich said.

Queensland Correction Services Minister Laura Gerber. Picture: Dan Peled

“Including drug trafficking in the proposed amendments provides no mechanism to address power imbalances, fear, coercion, or necessity, driving or contributing to the offending behaviour rather than calculated intent of the child.”

A spokeswoman for Youth Justice Minister Laura Gerber said the government had plans in place to alleviate the pressure on the system.

“The Crisafulli Government has already opened the Wacol Youth Remand Centre to boost capacity and will deliver Circuit Breaker Sentencing, a court-sentenced alternative, and the Staying on Track program to drive recidivism, which will alleviate pressure on the State’s youth detention system,” Ms Gerber said.

Originally published as New Qld youth crime laws feared to create chaos in youth detention