Rising youth crime allowed to fester on Labor's watch
'We cannot arrest our way out of this. It's that simple … The whole arrest, charge, bail, remand, court system, justice system, youth detention, can't be just the answer.'
When Victoria Police's Sergeant Tem Hawkes said these words to The Age two years ago, rising youth crime was already a long-standing problem. As we reported in our youth crime investigation in 2023, adolescents and early teenagers (aged 10-14) were the fastest-growing cohort of youth offenders involved in violent crime.
At Werribee Police Station, Hawkes and his fellow officers were part of the Embedded Youth Outreach Program (EYOP), in which youth workers accompanied police on patrols to try to give young people a pathway out of crime.
The program was not born out of woolly idealism but out of a hard-headed assessment by all involved that traditional law-and-order responses weren't working, and could in fact be making things worse. Its interventions with young people reduced their reoffending, even as rates of offending beyond the program continued to rise, according to a Swinburne University evaluation that forecast 1000 fewer offences on an annual basis as a result.
This week's news that youth crime is reaching record levels comes against a very different backdrop. The state government, struggling with budgetary woes in other areas, has cut back funding to EYOP and the Youth Support and Advocacy Service, which provides the program with social workers, and returned to pouring money into prisons.
All the while there is real community concern about rising crime rates, especially youth crime, with neighbourhoods increasingly turning to private security and home-surveillance devices.
From Labor promising to raise the age of criminal responsibility to 14 – a first step to dealing with the youngest offenders outside the setting of jail, which is proven to turn many of them into adult criminals – we now have Attorney-General Sonya Kilkenny measuring success by the doubling of young people on remand since last year.
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From its reversal on changing the age of criminal responsibility to the about-face on bail laws to the recent hop, skip and jump to a machete ban after the Northland shopping centre brawl, the Allan government gives the impression of making up its responses on the run, after scanning the headlines and considering only the political optics.
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The Age
7 hours ago
- The Age
Rising youth crime allowed to fester on Labor's watch
'We cannot arrest our way out of this. It's that simple … The whole arrest, charge, bail, remand, court system, justice system, youth detention, can't be just the answer.' When Victoria Police's Sergeant Tem Hawkes said these words to The Age two years ago, rising youth crime was already a long-standing problem. As we reported in our youth crime investigation in 2023, adolescents and early teenagers (aged 10-14) were the fastest-growing cohort of youth offenders involved in violent crime. At Werribee Police Station, Hawkes and his fellow officers were part of the Embedded Youth Outreach Program (EYOP), in which youth workers accompanied police on patrols to try to give young people a pathway out of crime. The program was not born out of woolly idealism but out of a hard-headed assessment by all involved that traditional law-and-order responses weren't working, and could in fact be making things worse. Its interventions with young people reduced their reoffending, even as rates of offending beyond the program continued to rise, according to a Swinburne University evaluation that forecast 1000 fewer offences on an annual basis as a result. This week's news that youth crime is reaching record levels comes against a very different backdrop. The state government, struggling with budgetary woes in other areas, has cut back funding to EYOP and the Youth Support and Advocacy Service, which provides the program with social workers, and returned to pouring money into prisons. All the while there is real community concern about rising crime rates, especially youth crime, with neighbourhoods increasingly turning to private security and home-surveillance devices. From Labor promising to raise the age of criminal responsibility to 14 – a first step to dealing with the youngest offenders outside the setting of jail, which is proven to turn many of them into adult criminals – we now have Attorney-General Sonya Kilkenny measuring success by the doubling of young people on remand since last year. Loading From its reversal on changing the age of criminal responsibility to the about-face on bail laws to the recent hop, skip and jump to a machete ban after the Northland shopping centre brawl, the Allan government gives the impression of making up its responses on the run, after scanning the headlines and considering only the political optics.
The Age
16 hours ago
- The Age
For all its faults, Israel has been a scapegoat
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Meanwhile, Arab nations characterised by a mix of quasi-feudal, oil-rich and misogynist potentates have been viewed as lacking in agency; when, in reality, they have oppressed their populations terribly. In the case of Iran, a nation with a proud Persian history, the Western world has largely ignored the terrible consequences of its Islamist rulers' brutal oppression of a sophisticated populace since the late 1970s. Trump's dithering over whether to act decisively against a regime that has through its proxies been the scourge of the Middle East for too long says it all. Israel, for all of its faults, has for too long been a convenient scapegoat. Jon McMillan, Mt Eliza Trump has his finger on the trigger Samuel Colt, the American who made the mass production of guns viable, had a famous quote: ″God made man, Colt makes them equal″. US President Donald Trump with his statements appears to be channelling this notion with his threats of aggression towards Iran. History indicates that negotiating with a gun held to your head is a pointless exercise, while popular wisdom indicates that you should never point a gun at someone unless you are prepared to shoot. Therefore, the person with the gun to their head should always assume the gun isn't loaded. The gun holder has only two options – either pull the trigger or capitulate. Is Trump willing to pull the trigger and plunge America and the Middle East into chaos? The rest of the world should hope not. Peter Roche, Carlton Australian troops must be kept out of any conflict The late Tom Uren was a mentor to our current prime minister. Uren was a pacifist who decried the call to arms to pointless conflicts. I sincerely hope that his influence on Anthony Albanese lingers in his thinking to prevent the possibility of sending our young people to the Middle East at the behest of the US. Peter Taylor, Midway Point, Tas Does Iran have weapons or not? Benjamin Netanyahu has been saying – since 2012 – that Iran is only weeks away from developing a nuclear weapon. I'm not sure which timetable he's checking but surely they would have had several by now? And have possibly used them? Doesn't this bring one to the conclusion that maybe they don't? David Jeffery, East Geelong Ask Australian-Iranians Amin Saikal has written that there is no evidence that Iran has a nuclear bomb (Opinion, ″ Few believe Iran has nuclear weapons. We can't afford to repeat the Iraq War lie ″, 19/6). However, there is plenty of evidence that it has enriched uranium well above the level required for peaceful purposes. Also, it has given many millions of dollars of weapons to its proxy militias in Yemen, Iraq, Lebanon, Syria and Gaza. These militias could then use it to make ″dirty″ radioactive bombs. Saikal seems to be taking the line that this is like the war in Iraq, for those non-existent weapons of mass destruction. This could actually be read as a call for the left in the West to support Iran, a totalitarian regime that has not even bothered to provide its citizens with bomb shelters. Iran has been calling for ″Death to America!″ and ″Death to Israel!″ from its inception. There are plenty of Iranians now in Australia who have good reasons to fear this regime. Ask them what they think. Pia Brous, Armadale Lack of moral authority In his opinion piece condemning Israel's strikes on Iran's weapons-making capabilities, Amin Saikal (20/6) – as a counterpoint to US support for Israel – cites 'Russia and China [who] have condemned Israel for starting the war (with Iran)', as supposedly credible moral authorities. Is he serious? These are two brutal regimes: One actively waging an unjustifiable war of aggression against Ukraine, the other engaged in the systemic oppression of Uyghurs and Tibetans. 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News.com.au
a day ago
- News.com.au
Horror as 11 people trapped inside minibus on major highway in Melbourne's east
A minibus has crashed into a pub Melbourne's eastern suburbs, leaving 11 people trapped inside. Emergency services were called to the corner of Glenferrie Rd and Dandenong Rd in Malvern about 9.25am on Friday after reports a minibus had crashed into the side of a pub. A Victoria Police spokesperson told NewsWire that 11 people were trapped inside the bus at the time of the incident. Firefighters worked to free the passengers who were unable to get out of the crushed bus. 'The passengers and driver were still on-board and unable to evacuate' a Fire Rescue Victorias spokesperson told NewsWire. 'The driver relocated the minibus, allowing firefighters to remove the vehicle door so everyone on-board could evacuate.' Ambulance Victoria were on the scene as they treated the 11 trapped passengers. 'Paramedics assessed 11 patients but no emergency treatment or transport was required,' a spokesperson told NewsWire. Police have launched an investigation into the crash.
