Youth and the Law
Students must watch a “clip” from the movie Sleepers (first 33 min). This movie shows what happens to four boys who due to extremely poor judgment and reckless behaviour become involved with the criminal justice system.
Assume for the purposes of this paper that the charges against the boys are Mischief Causing danger to Life (for the harm to the man injured in the subway stairs), Mischief over $5,000 (for taking and damaging the hot dog vender’s cart) and theft under $5,000) for stealing the hot dogs) As well, assume that the boys are 13 and 14 years old at the time of the incident.
Using the movie storyline as a reference point:
- Outline how the current conventional youth justice system would handle the above-mentioned scenario. Cite the Youth Criminal Justice Act and Criminal Code of Canada to assist with your analysis. Include the following: Philosophy, Age and Sentencing
- Outline how this case could have been dealt with under the restorative justice system
- Provide a brief opinion on which of the above systems of justice is most appropriate for the above-mentioned case
- Include a brief commentary on the subject of criminogenic behavior in youth using the example of the boys in the movie to help with your analysis.
*Make sure you reference your sources with properly cited in- text references and source material with a bibliography/list of references APA style. You must use at least five references (other than the text and legislative references) to support your analysis. Power point material should not be used as original source material.
Evaluation: Your essay will be graded using the following criteria: the structure of your essay (how well you develop a clear, coherent line of argument); direct references to and citation of materials; how well you apply the source material to your analysis; the quality of your analysis. Problems with organization, logic and clarity, as well as errors in grammar, spelling and syntax will figure in the grading process. Your paper must include in text citations and a complete bibliography/reference list of all sources used APA style.
- Essays without a proper bibliography will receive a mark of zero
- Essays without proper in-text citations will receive a maximum mark of 50%
