Call for refocus in Qld youth justice debate

“It may look good on paper – it may look like the government is cracking down – but really, it is just completely taking the context out,” Professor Walsh said. “It’s a misallocation of resources, and also attention. The attention should be on the child protection system … that’s what is failing.”

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Professor Walsh said many offenders were victims of crime themselves and had other complex problems, including mental and physical health issues, difficult home lives, and disengagement with school and work.

A 2019 Youth Justice Department census of 1846 young people found 63 per cent had been affected by family and domestic violence, with 14 per cent under a child protection order, and 59 per cent of Aboriginal and…