Editorial: Is it too much to ask that youth offenders are punished for bail breaches?

Queenslanders have long suspected that juvenile offenders who breach bail are treated too leniently. Now they know for sure, writes the editor.

Juvenile offenders are getting off with a slap on the wrist.

Queenslanders have long suspected that juvenile offenders who breach bail are treated too leniently. Now they know for sure.

Queensland Sentencing Advisory Council data obtained by The Courier-Mail shows just 16 youths were sentenced for breaching bail between March and June last year – after the state government reintroduced breach of bail as an offence – with 12 of those receiving just a reprimand.

The figures have raised the ire of victims advocates (for good reason), including Russell Field.

Mr Field is running for the LNP in the seat of Capalaba in the state election next month after his son Matthew, his partner Kate Leadbetter and their unborn child were killed by a 17-year-old who drove a stolen car through a red light.

“The teenager who killed my family in a stolen car was on bail for the seventh time,” Mr Field said.

“We need to shut the revolving door on bail, get these kids off the streets and prevent crime before it happens by keeping them on the right track to begin with.”

He’s right.

Bail is a very simply thing. A person – including a juvenile – is required to turn up to court on a specific date, they need to follow certain conditions, and they must not break the law.

Is it too much to ask that someone who fails to do that is punished?

LIONS PROVE ANYTHING’S POSSIBLE

It may be known as the AFL but our premier Aussie rules competition is still the VFL at heart.

The 18-team national competition, thanks to its Victorian roots, still boasts 10 teams from south of the Murray River, and eight from what Melburnians derisively refer to as “interstate”.

That imbalance will be addressed slightly when the Tasmanian Devils enter the competition in 2028, although there is one fact that shows you where the power lies in the AFL.

It is that the Sydney Swans, who finished the season first and won their two finals, and the Brisbane Lions, who finished fifth and had three epic finals wins, will play off for the ultimate prize at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

They will also have to fly down a day early so they can entertain the people of Melbourne with a street parade.

And don’t think things are likely to change anytime soon – the AFL’s grand final contract with the MCG runs until 2059.

But that’s not the only hurdle teams from Queensland, NSW, South Australia and Western Australia have to overcome in the national competition. With the majority of teams in Melbourne, most away trips involve a flight, while Victorian powerhouses like Collingwood barely leave the comfort of the MCG.

All of this, of course, just makes the “interstate” grand final that will take place on Saturday all the more sweeter. For us at least – in Melbourne they will be quietly seething.

And it makes the achievement of the Lions, who in consecutive weeks came back from a 44-point deficit against the Giants in Sydney and a 25-point deficit against the Cats in Melbourne, all the more incredible.

The level of belief within Chris Fagan’s team must be off the charts and will stand them in great stead as they go into the decider as underdogs.

In a team full of great characters and stories, perhaps the best is Fagan himself. An outsider from the start, Fagan never played at the top level and was seen for many years as the “good cop” assistant coach alongside the intense Alastair Clarkson at Hawthorn.

The amiable Fagan still seems like an anomaly in the high-pressure world of coaching, always greeting the media and fans with a smile, despite results. But it is his relationship with his players that truly sets him apart.

It’s a relationship that is defined by trust. He asks his players to trust that the decisions he makes are in the best interests of the team. And in return he trusts his players to carry out his instructions.

We have seen that trust in action over the last two weeks when the Lions threw caution to the wind to chase down more fancied opponents.

Fagan – who took over at the Lions at their lowest ebb – is now in his eighth season at the helm, and has presided over a period of steady improvement.

Last year they fell agonisingly short in the decider, losing an epic grand final to Collingwood by just four points.

It’s not often that teams get an immediate chance at redemption, but the Lions and Fagan, through belief and trust, have earned the right to turn the agony of 2023 into ecstasy in 2024.

And it also gives Fagan the chance to prove that nice guys don’t always finish last.

Responsibility for election comment is taken by Chris Jones, corner of Mayne Rd & Campbell St, Bowen Hills, Qld 4006. Printed and published by NEWSQUEENSLAND (ACN 009 661 778). Contact details here

Originally published as Editorial: Is it too much to ask that youth offenders are punished for bail breaches?