Victoria Police backs cautions over charges for young offenders

While Jacinta Allan is talking tough on youth crime, Victoria Police trials radical plan to cut the ‘punitive’ charging of teens.

Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan. Picture: David Crosling

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A trial handing first-time teenage and young offenders cautions and diversions instead of “punitive” criminal charges to minimise “contact with police and the courts” has been backed by a Victoria Police review despite frontline officers raising concerns about the program.

In the midst of a teen crime wave that has forced Premier Jacinta Allan to order a crackdown on youth bail, the program – co-sponsored by Victoria Police, and legal and welfare agencies – has been declared a success in a major report handed to police.

The final evaluation report, obtained by The Australian, into the Youth Crime Prevention and Early Intervention Project found reoffending rates were slashed among first-time offenders in the outer northern and western regions of Brimbank and Wyndham from 54.7 per cent to 30.5 per cent.

The three-year trial started in 2021 cautioning and diverting first-time offenders aged 10 to 17 and was expanded to cover 18 to 24-year-olds and the region of Melton, the report reveals.

The report reveals that during the trial, the level of support among police for issuing diversions for serious crimes increased from 60 per cent to 68 per cent.

Youth crime is being tackled with a trial encouraging cautions and diversions, despite police concerns. Picture: Thinkstock

‘Significant changes in policing outcomes’

“The YCPEIP seeks to reduce crime by diverting eligible children and young people from the criminal justice system, and minimising contact with police and the courts,” the report states.

“The … program has led to significant changes in policing outcomes in Brimbank and Wyndham. Both areas experienced a substantial reduction in remand rates and a significant increase in the use of pre-charge options, including warning and cautions.

“These changes indicate a successful shift towards less punitive and more diversionary options, aligning with the program’s objectives.”

The YCPEIP report does highlight opposition to the program among Brimbank and Wyndham police, noting officers had “raised concerns about community safety”, particularly relating to whether “diverting certain offenders from prosecution could lead to a perception of leniency or an increase in youth-related crime in the short term”.

“Balancing the program’s rehabilitative aims with the broader community safety expectations remains a key consideration for law enforcement,” the report states.

Police concerns

A snapshot of police concerns is included.

“The troops underneath me are the ones who are arresting these people, having to deal with them face-to-face daily … there are … some strong opinions around it. And there’s a lot of people who don’t agree with the new approach of cautioning under YCPEIP,” a police officer told the review.

Another police officer said: “I am strongly opposed to youth offenders receiving cautions for serious offences where there is no remorse, and they have previously received cautions.

“How is a young person held to account if they know that, regardless of the offending, they will receive a caution? There should be a maximum number of cautions.”

The verdict on the caution and diversion program comes as youth crime hits a 15-year high in Victoria, sparking a political crisis for the Allan government, blamed for fuelling a revolt in last month’s by-election in Werribee – located near Wyndham – that saw Labor’s vote collapse and the party cling to the seat by just a couple of hundred votes.

Crime data released late last year has exposed the scale of offending by children aged 14 to 17, showing crimes rising by more than 20 per cent, with 20,753 incidents recorded.

Offenders aged 18 to 24 are also responsible for many of the spate of home invasions unfolding in suburbs.

Crime levels ‘completely unacceptable’

Faced with more examples of frightening home invasions plaguing the suburbs, Ms Allan on Wednesday conceded the government needed to do more and crime levels were “completely unacceptable”.

“It’s why the (bail) laws need to be changed and they will,” she said. “I understand that the current laws, the current settings, are not working. It’s completely unacceptable to see these repeat patterns of criminal behaviour.

“It’s also unacceptable to me that too many Victorians don’t feel safe in their homes. Working people are having their property invaded … this is absolutely unacceptable behaviour.”

Under the YCPEIP trial more than 100 police officers were trained in the “benefits of early intervention and alternative pathways” when dealing with offenders aged 10 to 24 “beyond resorting to the formal justice system”.

“Overall, there has been an increase in police member confidence in issuing warnings, cautions and diversions to youth offenders,” the report states.

Stolen cars and home invasions are among the crimes causing concerns in the community. Picture: iStock

‘Next steps’ as trial backed

Victoria Police backed the trial on Wednesday, telling The Australian the program may be rolled out more widely across Melbourne suburbs. Police say they have briefed the government on the results of the trial and are in discussions about “next steps”.

Victoria Police north west metro region commander Mark Galliot said the program “seeks to reduce youth crime by diverting eligible children and young people away from the criminal justice system and providing immediate access to support services”.

Commander Galliot said the most common crimes police issued cautions for were shop theft, criminal damage, common assault and drug possession.

“Police will only consider a caution or fast-tracked diversion for a serious crime if there are exceptional circumstances to the offending,” he told The Australian.

“Factors considered are a young person’s offending history, their living situation, age, and impact on any victims. The offender’s role in the crime will also be scrutinised and a caution may be considered if their role was peripheral to the main offending.

“It is exceptionally rare for a caution to be issued for a serious or violent offence, with Victoria Police having zero hesitation in laying charges against a young person who endangers the community.”

Youth suspects when arrested are being offered a different approach by police. Picture: iStock

Three cautions

Commander Galliot said police had issued only three cautions for aggravated burglary offences in the past three years – 0.2 per cent of all cautions issued.

The 68-page report reveals that during the $850,000 study, police grew more confident in issuing cautions and diversions and that as a result in Brimbank the rates of teenagers being remanded behind bars plunged from 46.8 per cent to 14.2 per cent. In Wyndham, the rate had dropped from 30.6 per cent to 5.3 per cent.

The report noted that between December 2022 and July 2024, 590 young offenders were referred to support services, but just 26 per cent were rated a success, while in 61 per cent of cases “no contact” was made with the offenders.

“YCPEIP partners noted that while the … engagement rates, particularly the high non-contact rate, are not ideal, they are consistent with those programs working with vulnerable and at-risk youths,” the report states.

Victoria Police told The Australian that offending by young people aged 10-24 in Brimbank has decreased by 17 per cent, while in Wyndham it has increased by 5 per cent throughout the time of the program.

“When comparing to the previous year, (offending in 2023-24) by those aged 10-24 increased by less than 1 per cent in both areas, which is pleasing when compared to the statewide increase of 13.5 per cent,” a spokesman said.

Data included in the report lists “youth crime incidents” by 10 to 24-year-olds in Wyndham at close to 2000 in 2024, and almost 1200 in Brimbank.

The report revealed that between November 2021 and March 2024, 88 offenders aged 10 to 17 in Brimbank and 74 in Wyndham were issued a diversion. The report found that this was a “lower than expected number” and pointed to an “under-utilisation” of the diversion process by police.

The YCPEIP program was aimed at reducing reoffending rates among teenagers and later expanded to cover offenders in the 18-to-24 age bracket through “increased cautions, diversion, early referrals to legal and social supports, and community legal education”.

The report found that among the benefits of the trial was an annual $4.4m saving in criminal system costs, contributing to an overall saving of $8.6m in so-called “social costs”.