Tasmania set to be first jurisdiction to raise minimum age of children in youth detention
2 years, 7 months ago

Tasmania set to be first jurisdiction to raise minimum age of children in youth detention

ABC  

At about 11 years old, Alexander* found himself in Tasmania's Ashley Youth Detention Centre. Key points: Advocates hope raising the age of detention is also a step towards raising the age of criminal responsibility The change will come into force in 2024 A former youth detainee has called for more diversionary programs to help keep young people out of the system "Petrified. "We know that for younger children, detention does not support rehabilitation or reduce the likelihood of reoffending," Minister for Children and Youth Roger Jaensch told budget estimates. Aboriginal adviser to Amnesty International, Rodney Dillon, who has long advocated for the government to raise the age of criminal responsibility to 14, said he was "pretty excited" about the decision. Children's commissioner Leanne McLean said the move meant the government had acknowledged "detention was not an appropriate environment" for children aged between 10 and 13.

Youth Children Criminal Age Detention Young Raise Tasmania Criminal Responsibility Youth Detention Minimum Age  place  tasmania  step  children  young  criminal  ashley  raise  detention  jurisdiction  set  youth  age  raising  minimum

History of this topic

Judge set to rule on settlement for former Ashley Youth Detention Centre detainees
1 month, 3 weeks ago

Judge set to rule on settlement for former Ashley Youth Detention Centre detainees

ABC  

A Tasmanian Supreme Court judge is set to rule on whether a $75 million compensation payment for 129 former detainees of the state's only youth prison be approved. In Tasmania's first class action, it was alleged the former inmates had suffered, witnessed or were threatened with sexual abuse, serious physical abuse, and false imprisonment while at the Ashley Youth Detention …

Ashley Youth Detention Centre replacement facilities shelved for community-service approach by Tasmanian government
3 months, 1 week ago

Ashley Youth Detention Centre replacement facilities shelved for community-service approach by Tasmanian government

ABC  

The Tasmanian government appears to have shelved four out of the five facilities it was going to build to replace the state's troubled youth detention centre. Labelled a "gladiator pit" and a "prison for kids" the horrors of the Ashley Youth Detention Centre spilled into the spotlight during the state's Commission of Inquiry into Government Responses to Child Sexual Abuse …

'I thought I was going to die': Former youth detainee says staff turned off fire sprinklers
1 year, 6 months ago

'I thought I was going to die': Former youth detainee says staff turned off fire sprinklers

ABC  

In short: A former detainee claims he was injured in a fire that escalated because staff had turned off fire sprinklers. The department is investigating the fire that was deliberately lit by a detainee at the facility A former detainee at the Ashley Youth Detention Centre says he suffered burns in a fire that escalated because the facility's sprinkler system …

Youth justice overhaul 'directly at odds' with Path to Treaty and Closing the Gap, Queensland government warned
1 year, 10 months ago

Youth justice overhaul 'directly at odds' with Path to Treaty and Closing the Gap, Queensland government warned

ABC  

Queensland's proposed youth justice overhaul is "racially prejudicial", at odds with Path to Treaty and Closing the Gap commitments, and could be met with "extreme resistance" from detention workers, the government has been warned. In one submission, the Queensland Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Child Protection Peak accused the government of a lack of consultation with First Nations leaders, saying …

Inside Tasmania's troubled Ashley Youth Detention Centre, where kids say they get no help
2 years, 1 month ago

Inside Tasmania's troubled Ashley Youth Detention Centre, where kids say they get no help

ABC  

A "gladiator pit", a "war zone", a "kindergarten for the adult prison" — these are just some of the ways Tasmania's only youth detention centre has been described. "I was angry … I think my son's at Ashley, that he's safe where he is, but he's actually got heart issues and no one from that centre has let me know." …

The hidden report that spells out the dismal failures of youth detention policy in Australia
2 years, 2 months ago

The hidden report that spells out the dismal failures of youth detention policy in Australia

ABC  

It's a report that politicians don't want you to see. Four Corners, as part of an investigation into ongoing abuses within youth detention, has obtained a report of the Council of Attorneys-General review examining the age of criminal responsibility. "The Commonwealth, State and Territory governments should raise the minimum age of criminal responsibility to 14 years of age, without exception," …

If locking up children in youth detention only makes them repeat offenders, is there a better way?
2 years, 2 months ago

If locking up children in youth detention only makes them repeat offenders, is there a better way?

ABC  

Queensland authorities have known for years that placing children in youth detention is the worst of all possible outcomes — it’s state government policy to keep kids out of custody. Which is why the Premier’s declaration last month that the government is “looking at expanding youth justice detention” and flagging a new youth detention centre in Cairns caught child safety …

Queensland's youth justice system 'in crisis' amid human rights breaches, children's commissioner warns
2 years, 2 months ago

Queensland's youth justice system 'in crisis' amid human rights breaches, children's commissioner warns

ABC  

Queensland is systematically breaching human rights by locking up more children in police watch houses, Australia's National Children's Commissioner says. Key points: Cairns is one of several sites being considered for a fourth youth detention centre to be built Children's Commissioner Anne Hollonds says Australia's youth justice system is "in a state of crisis" There are about 291 young people …

Nine ministers had oversight of the Ashley Youth Detention Centre, but all of them were absent from the abuse inquiry
2 years, 3 months ago

Nine ministers had oversight of the Ashley Youth Detention Centre, but all of them were absent from the abuse inquiry

ABC  

Australians have heard shocking and harrowing evidence over recent weeks about young people being mistreated while incarcerated at Tasmania's only juvenile detention centre. Photo shows A graphic showing a medical worker with blackened face looking at a folder in front of a sign reading: LGH Emergency After horrific tales of invasive strip searches, beatings and gang rapes, Tasmania's Commission of …

Female detainee tells of Ashley prison abuse and 'favouritism' of some male inmates by staff
2 years, 4 months ago

Female detainee tells of Ashley prison abuse and 'favouritism' of some male inmates by staff

ABC  

Abused, miserable and locked up, Charlotte* turned to self-harm — but when she was caught by a youth worker, the response was far from kind. Key points: Abuse at Ashley has been the focus of recent hearings by the Commission of Inquiry into the Tasmanian Government's Responses to Child Sexual Abuse in Institutional Settings Charlotte spent time at Tasmania's custodial …

The Ashley Youth Detention Centre is set for closure, so here's how the government will replace it
2 years, 4 months ago

The Ashley Youth Detention Centre is set for closure, so here's how the government will replace it

ABC  

Tasmania's Commission of Inquiry has heard shocking and horrific evidence about a culture of violence and sexual abuse at the state's only youth detention facility, with one expert saying he would "raze Ashley to the ground" if he could. Counsel assisting the commission Rachel Ellyard warned the evidence presented about the Ashley Youth Detention Centre would be "confronting and distressing" …

Former Ashley Youth Detention Centre detainees lodge class action over alleged abuse
2 years, 5 months ago

Former Ashley Youth Detention Centre detainees lodge class action over alleged abuse

ABC  

More than 100 former detainees of Tasmania's Ashley Youth Detention Centre have lodged a class action in Tasmania's Supreme Court, alleging they were whipped, kicked, bullied, encouraged to join gangs, sexually abused and stripped naked. Key points: The court documents detail the claims of the four men dating back to the early 1990s One man alleged that he found the …

Work culture could be why detention centre staff have 'unfavourable views about children', commission hears
2 years, 8 months ago

Work culture could be why detention centre staff have 'unfavourable views about children', commission hears

ABC  

"Negative socialisation" could explain why the behaviour and attitudes of Ashley Youth Detention Centre workers might reflect attitudes of "years past", Tasmania's child sexual abuse commission of inquiry has heard. Key points: Tasmania's child sexual abuse commission of inquiry has heard evidence about organisational culture The commission heard that negative socialisation of new workers could turn them from being pro-children …

As Ashley Youth Detention Centre closes, Tasmania looking at new programs for at-risk youth
3 years, 2 months ago

As Ashley Youth Detention Centre closes, Tasmania looking at new programs for at-risk youth

ABC  

At a rural property in south-east Tasmania, boys have been put through their paces in what's believed to be an Australian first. Key points: Tasmania will shut the Ashley Youth Detention Centre over the next three years and replace it with a therapeutic model of care JCP Youth director Will Smith says he has had success with a camp for …

Commission of inquiry into child sexual abuse in Tasmanian institutions begins
3 years, 2 months ago

Commission of inquiry into child sexual abuse in Tasmanian institutions begins

ABC  

Picturesque Launceston is a small city in a small state, with a population of about 70,000 people living around the Tamar River. 'Sorry doesn't fix the years of suffering': Survivor angry police ignored allegations Photo shows Sexual abuse survivor Keelie McMahon looks at the camera. The shocking revelations came after the state was rocked by a series of historical child …

What it's like on the frontline of the Northern Territory's soaring youth detention numbers
3 years, 3 months ago

What it's like on the frontline of the Northern Territory's soaring youth detention numbers

ABC  

Andrew Lockyer has made the 25-minute drive to the Alice Springs Youth Detention Centre more times than he can count. Key points: More than 60 young people have entered the NT justice system for the first time since May Youth justice advocates are concerned it's the result of controversial youth bail laws The number of youth detainees in the NT …

Ashley Youth Detention Centre in Tasmania's north to close down and be replaced by two new facilities
3 years, 4 months ago

Ashley Youth Detention Centre in Tasmania's north to close down and be replaced by two new facilities

ABC  

Tasmania's troubled youth detention centre will be closed and replaced with a therapeutic model of care, in a significant change of direction announced by the state government. Key points: Two separate facilities across the state will replace the Ashley Youth Detention Centre over the next three years The centre has been the subject of sexual abuse claims and is the …

Female Ashley detention worker alleges bullying and sexual harassment
3 years, 8 months ago

Female Ashley detention worker alleges bullying and sexual harassment

ABC  

Female employees of Tasmania's troubled Ashley Youth Detention Centre say they were subject to sexist, bullying behaviour by other staff while working at the facility. Key points: One woman alleges she was "subjected to severe bullying" by some staff The worker ultimately went on stress leave Another woman alleges she left her job following severe bullying One woman was brought …

Ashley Youth Detention Centre staffer accused of rape was not stood down for 10 months, Tasmanian Parliament hears
3 years, 9 months ago

Ashley Youth Detention Centre staffer accused of rape was not stood down for 10 months, Tasmanian Parliament hears

ABC  

Management at Tasmania's Ashley Youth Detention Centre knew a staff member had been accused of a rape for 10 months before standing them down, according to a claim made in Tasmania's Parliament. Greens leader Cassy O'Connor told Parliament management became aware of a potential incident involving a staff member and a teenager at the facility in January 2020. "How can …

Former premier labels Ashley a 'mini Risdon Prison', urges its closure
4 years, 1 month ago

Former premier labels Ashley a 'mini Risdon Prison', urges its closure

ABC  

A former Tasmanian Labor premier has described how she "felt sick" walking into Ashley Youth Detention Centre when responsible for the facility, and is joining calls for the Liberal State Government to close it down. Key points: A former premier who was also responsible for Ashley Youth Detention Centre says the facility was putting children on the "pathway to Risdon" …

Staffer accused of Ashley Youth Detention Centre abuse promoted
4 years, 1 month ago

Staffer accused of Ashley Youth Detention Centre abuse promoted

ABC  

An employee of Tasmania's only youth detention centre was promoted after allegations of serious misconduct were made against them, the ABC can reveal. Key points: Greens leader Cassy O'Connor told Parliament she's had numerous complaints from the public disputing Government claims Ashley is safe for children She wants confirmation whether a staff member stood down after rape allegations had recently …

Rape accusations against three government departments — what comes next?
4 years, 1 month ago

Rape accusations against three government departments — what comes next?

ABC  

Staff across three Tasmanian government departments have been accused of raping children in their care in a series of shocking allegations that date back to at least the 1970s. Instead, the Government has announced three separate inquiries: one apiece into the Education and Health Departments, and another into allegations of misconduct at the Ashley Youth Detention Centre. Education and health …

Class action prepared against Tasmanian Government alleging abuse at Ashley Youth Detention Centre
4 years, 5 months ago

Class action prepared against Tasmanian Government alleging abuse at Ashley Youth Detention Centre

ABC  

Nick* was 17 years old when he was detained at the Ashley Youth Detention Centre in the early 2000s. Key points: Nick was detained on remand at Ashley for two months, and he said it had a "massive impact" on his life After interviews with 100 former Ashley detainees, lawyer Sebastian Buscemi is preparing a class action The action will …

Redactions fail reveals serious deficiencies in Tasmania's Ashley Youth Detention Centre
5 years, 2 months ago

Redactions fail reveals serious deficiencies in Tasmania's Ashley Youth Detention Centre

ABC  

The Tasmanian Government has accidentally released details of a damning report revealing serious security deficiencies and issues surrounding the use of force at the Ashley Youth Detention Centre. Key points: Ashley Youth Detention Centre "houses juvenile offenders of both sexes aged 10-18 years", the government says The 50-bed facility was established at its current location in 1922 and is Tasmania's …

Future riots could be avoided as Australia takes steps towards national youth detention oversight
5 years, 10 months ago

Future riots could be avoided as Australia takes steps towards national youth detention oversight

ABC  

Violent rioting at a Northern Territory youth detention centre that eventually saw detainees tear-gassed could have been avoided, the National Children's Commissioner believes. Key points: Formal monitoring of NT youth detention centres began last week Steps are being taken nationwide to ensure compliance with an anti-torture treaty This could prevent riots such as one that occurred at Darwin's Don Dale …

Discover Related