CUSTODY, SUPERVISION AND REHABILITATION

The purpose of the juvenile custody and supervision system is to contribute to the protection of society in the following ways: 

  • carrying out court sentences by keeping juveniles in custody and supervising them in safe, fair and humane ways.
  • exposing juveniles during their custody and supervision to programmes which would assist them to be rehabilitated, educated and reintegrated into their communities. 
  • recognizing that juveniles are a vulnerable group and require special attention and protection both during and after their period of custody and supervision, as well as the need for their rights and well-being to be guaranteed.

In order to achieve the purpose of the juvenile custody and supervision system the following principles are to be adhered to:

  •  The least restrictive measures should be used based on the circumstances of each case.
  • A juvenile who is sentenced to custody does not lose the rights that other juveniles enjoy.
  • A hey are just temporarily removed or restricted; a juvenile who is sentenced to custody is entitled to regular contact with parents or other family members.
  •  The families of juveniles and members of the public must be involved in the system.
  • Forthright, fair and timely decisions should be made; juveniles should be able to have decisions reviewed in an effective and timely manner. 
  • Juveniles must be allowed to continue their education and training.

Juveniles in custody must be held separately from adults unless they are removed to a halfway house or an adult facility with other adults upon attaining the age of eighteen years or unless at the time when a sentence is imposed a juvenile has attained that age.

The Minister has a duty to establish residential facilities for custody, education and rehabilitation of juveniles who are sentenced to be in custody for a term , as well as temporary holding centers. There is provision for secure and open residential facilities.

Secure residential facilities are facilities that provide the most controlled and restrictive programs. Almost all programs and services are provided on-grounds. Access to and from such facilities is strictly controlled and they usually securely fenced.

Open residential facilities provide a non-secure environment for juveniles who require removal from the community but do not require the more restrictive setting or restraining environment of a secure facility. Temporary holding centers are for juveniles:

  1. with pending court matters.
  2. who are awaiting transfer to a residential facility.
  3. who are awaiting reintegration with their family and community after serving a period in custody.
  4. that the Juvenile Justice Committee (JJC) thinks should be held there.

Provision for the New Opportunity Corps to continue as an open residential facility is made. It would no longer be a secure residential facility.

Facilities operated by the ministry assigned responsibility for establishment and maintenance for other holding facilities for juveniles.

The Minister has a duty to appoint a Director of Youth who has overall responsibility for organizing and supervising the custody, education and rehabilitation of juveniles in all facilities.

The Minister is permitted to assign his/her powers and duties under the Act and make regulations for the smooth functioning of the Act.

Principal and staff of facilities

The JJC is responsible for appointing a Principal and Deputy Principal to control, supervise and manage the facilities as well as for appointing the staff of these facilities.

The management and staff of facilities in existence prior to this Act coming into force and which become facilities under the Act shall be transferred as members of staff of those facilities.

Juvenile Justice Committee (JJC)

The Minister is required to appoint the JJC and there is provision for the term of office of the JJC and composition. The duties and powers of the JJC are also set out and include:

  • making frequent visits to facilities.
  • hearing complaints of juveniles.
  • causing investigations of complaints.
  • causing investigations of abuses or irregularities.
  • taking appropriate action in cases of complaints and irregularities.
  • keeping record of complaints and results of investigations; vii. making reports to the Minister about abuses, irregularities and other matters.

The JJC is required to submit an annual report to the Minister and the committee as a whole as well as each member has free access to the juvenile facilities.

A principal of facility must accept a juvenile ordered by a court to be committed to the facility unless the written order appears defective, and must keep a register of all juveniles so committed. 

A facility has to be always open to accept juveniles referred to it and the maximum number, sex and ages of juveniles to be housed in each facility has to be stipulated by the Minister upon the advice of the JJC.

If the Director of Youth and the Chief Probation Officer agree or if a court directs, a juvenile may be transferred from one facility to another. If a juvenile is transferred the principal of the facility from which the transfer is being done has a duty to inform the juvenile’s parents.

The principal has a duty to ensure that a juvenile is given the opportunity to receive religious support and practice his or her religion.

If a juvenile cannot receive adequate medical treatment at a facility that juvenile must be taken to a hospital or other institution to receive necessary medical assistance.

The Minister on the advice of the JJC must set the limits for disciplining a juvenile in a facility and the principal may instruct that a juvenile be disciplined in a reasonable manner and within the limits set by the Minister.

A juvenile cannot be disciplined by:

  • physical punishment or violence.
  • being deprived of food or drink. 
  • cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment.
  • treatment that could negatively affect his or her physical, psychological or emotional wellbeing.
  • being kept away from educational training.

When a court orders a juvenile to be kept in or supervised at a facility the principal, after consulting the Chief Probation Officer, may set appropriate conditions in addition to those ordered by the court to support, and address the needs of the juvenile and foster his or her reintegration into the community.

 If such conditions are set they must be explained to the juvenile, put into writing and a copy given to the juvenile and a parent or adult assisting him or her.

If a principal recommends to the JJC that a juvenile should be released from a facility for a period prior to completion of his or her term, for compassionate or humanitarian reasons or for the purpose of rehabilitating the juvenile or reintegrating him or her into the community, the JJC may authorise that the juvenile be sent on reintegration leave for a period not in excess of thirty days. Conditions may be applied to reintegration leave. 

Such leave can be renewed but it can also be revoked for good reason. If the leave is revoked or if the juvenile breaches any condition of the leave the juvenile may be arrested and returned to the facility. 

Failure to return without good cause when the period of leave has finished can be treated as a breach of discipline of the facility and any period of unauthorised absence will not be deducted from the period of time that the juvenile was ordered to be held or supervised at the facility. However, time spent on permitted leave shall be calculated as part of the period of custody ordered.

Apart from reintegration leave there is provision for authorized release of the juvenile at specified times for purposes such as attending school or any other educational institution, participating in sports or recreational activities, working or assisting the juvenile’s family with chores. 

The parents or adult assisting a juvenile must inform the principal of a facility of any change of his or her address. 

The JJC has authority to allow the release of a juvenile from a facility before completion of his or her term of custody or supervision in exceptional cases on compassionate grounds. 

There is also provision for early discharge of a juvenile in the event that the discharge date falls on a weekend or holiday. The juvenile would be released on the day before the holiday or weekend. 

After a juvenile has completed his or her term of custody at a facility and is released the juvenile can be placed under supervision of a Probation Officer for a period to assist the juvenile in reintegrating into society.